The Sound in the Darkness
by AWildeRomantic
Summary: COMPLETE! SG1 encounters a bacteria that leads to something far greater, including an alien race far more deadly than the goa'uld, but with the same intentions of enslaving the galaxy. SamJack, bad summary, please r&r :D
1. Infection

A/N – This is set some where in the earlier seasons, not really at any specific time. I just wanted to write my own random little season, complete with its own bad guys :P My first Stargate fic, so please R&R. Update 1/7/07 – Made a few changes to chapter one, though nothing major.

* * *

Part I: Infection

At first glance P3X-427 appeared to be home to a very advanced race, but when SG-1 stepped into the long hall that seemed to serve as a gate room, they could all tell something was wrong.

"There aren't any people." Daniel commented, looking out the huge plate glass windows to the deserted streets beyond.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Oh really? I hadn't noticed." Daniel scowled, but they all continued on out of the building.

As they walked through the city, which was huge, they found no signs of life save for a few indigenous squirrel-like animals. Finally they came upon a tall, white building with some writing above the double doors in the front.

Squinting up at them, Daniel said, "They look like Asgard runes…I think they say 'hospital' or something along those lines."

"Well," Jack said. "Why don't we check it out? May be there's someone in there who can give us some answers."

They held their weapons up. Daniel reached out and pushed a green button next to the doors, they slid open, and SG-1 entered the building.

The first hallway they went down was just as deserted as the rest of the city. Sam opened the first door they came to, and gasped as they stepped through.

"Oh, god!"

It looked like too many people had come to the hospital and they'd had to stick them anywhere. People lay on beds along the walls, and in the middle of the room…but they were all dead, they're eyes open, glassy, and staring.

"Oh god…" Sam said again, backing up. "Sir, we should get out of here." They all backed out of the room and shut the door.

"Right." Jack frowned. "Now what?"

"Sir, it looks like these people all died from some sort of disease," Sam said. " And, judging by the fact their bodies haven't began to decay yet, it happened pretty recently. I think we should leave and come back with proper protection."

"What if there're some survivors?" Daniel asked. "Don't you think we should try to help them?"

Jack was looking around the hallway. "I like Major Carter's idea better. Let's come back here with some HAZMAT suits and then we can see what we can do. C'mon, lets get back to the stargate."

They turned and left the hospital rather quickly. They were walking back along the streets when Sam made a noise and slapped at her neck. Jack turned around raising an eyebrow.

"Something wrong, Carter?"

Sam was looking at her fingers. "Nothing, Sir, I just thought something landed on me."

"Doc Fraiser can look at you when we get back."

"Yes sir."

Janet found nothing wrong with any of them when they got back, though Hammond wanted them to wait a while before returning to the planet.

Sam was up late one night in her lab working on a new project with naquadah reactors. She'd already been through several cups of coffee, but was beginning to feel the effects of fatigue setting in. A sharp pain shot through her head. She put her hands over her face, pushing the heels of her palms against her eyes. 'I should really be getting to bed…' she thought glumly.

Jack, meanwhile, was passing when he saw Sam sitting in her lab with her face in her hands.

"Carter, you ok?" he asked, stepping into the room.

"Yes sir." Sam said, not looking up.

"You sure?"

"Yeah, I…" Sam's voice trailed off as she finally did look up at Jack. She suddenly began blinking furiously, then reached up and rubbed her hands over her eyes. "Sir, no…actually…" her voice trailed off again, and when she spoke her voice was quiet and shaky. "Sir, I can't see."

"What?!" Jack rushed over to Sam and put a hand on her shoulder.

"My vision was swimming a minute ago and now it's gone!"

"Ok ok," Jack said slowly. "Just calm down." He took Sam's face in his hands and peered closely at her eyes. "Your eyes just look a little red. Come on, let's take you down to Doc Fraiser."

Jack put a hand under Sam's arm and helped her to her feet. She put an arm around his shoulder as they walked out of the room and down the hallway. Rounding a corner, Jack accidentally led Sam right into Daniel, who stumbled, almost dropping the papers he was holding.

"Oh, sorry Sam."

Sam turned her face towards him. "Daniel?"

"What's wrong?" Daniel asked.

"Ahh…" Jack grimaced. "Carter can't see anything."

"What?" Daniel looked alarmed. "Why? How?"

"If I knew do you think I'd look so worried?" Sam asked. She tightened her arm around Jack's shoulders. "Sir, I'd like to get down to the infirmary."

"Here, I'll help." Daniel put an arm around Sam as well, and the three of them walked down to the infirmary.

Janet looked up as they entered and Jack and Daniel got Sam over to one of the beds.

"What's the matter?" Janet asked, hurrying over.

"Carter mysteriously went blind." Jack said, putting one hand on his hip and keeping the other protectively on Sam's shoulder.

Janet raised an eyebrow, but immediately began examining Sam's eyes. "What were you doing?"

"I was just working in my lab…" Sam said.

"Did something get in your eyes? A chemical? Some dust from something?"

"No," Sam shook her head. "My vision started swimming, I thought I was just tired. I put my hands over my face, then Colonel O'Neill came in to see if I was alright, I looked up at him and all I could see were indistinct shapes, and then it all went black."

"Well, I don't see anything wrong with your eyes, the area around them is a bit red…"

"I was rubbing them."

"Yeah, that's understandable." Janet flipped over a page on her clipboard and wrote something down. "I'm going to take a blood test, then probably do an MRI. I'll be back in a minute." She turned and hurried off towards the other end of the infirmary.

"Uhmm…" Daniel gestured down at his papers. "I was sort of in the middle of something…"

"It's ok, Daniel." Sam said. "I'll be fine."

"I'll stay." Jack said. "But if you want to stop by Hammond's office, Daniel, and tell him, that would be great."

"Sure." Daniel nodded. "Hope you get better, Sam."

Sam smiled. "Thanks."

A couple hours later Jack, Daniel, Janet, Teal'c and Hammond all sat in the briefing room.

"So have you figured out what's wrong with Major Carter?" Hammond asked.

"Well," Janet consulted her notes. "Sam's got a strain of bacteria in her blood, which has spread to her brain and has apparently shut down her visual cortex."

Hammond frowned. "Do you recognize the bacteria? Is it something you can cure?"

"It's not something I've ever seen before." Janet replied, shaking her head.

"Sam couldn't have gotten it on P3X-427," Daniel said. "You checked us when we got back, there wasn't anything wrong."

"That's what I thought at first as well." Janet sighed heavily. "But…I examined the bacteria, and it multiplies very quickly. Sam may have had only one small microbe in her blood, and I would have had a one in a million chance of picking it up. In the time since I tested her the bacteria has spread a great deal."

"So what does this bacteria do, exactly?" Jack asked, his brow furrowed. "Besides shutting down her visual…whatever."

Janet shrugged. "I'm not sure. I'm planning on doing another MRI, but I'm guessing that it's going to spread to other parts of her brain, maybe shutting down all the sensory regions. And then…"

"And then?"

"And then…probably shut down the rest of the brain."

Jack sighed. "So it's killing her."

Janet gave Jack a worried look. "I can't be positive, but that's what it looks like."

"Wait," Hammond said suddenly. "If this bacteria is so dangerous, shouldn't Major Carter be put in quarantine?"

"Sir," Janet said. "Judging from the tests I ran, the bacteria is only transferable by blood. It attaches itself to the blood cells in order to get to the brain. You can't catch it by being near the person, or even by exchanging any bodily fluids other then blood."

"So we don't have to worry about anyone else catching it?"

"No."

"Good."

At that moment, however, the phone rang. It was one of the nurses, calling Janet back down to the infirmary. She and Jack hurried down to find Sam sitting up in her bed, looking upset.

"I think my sense of smells going," she said.

"Are you sure?" Jack asked, sitting on the edge of her bed and putting a hand on her arm.

"I can't explain it, Sir," Sam said, turning her head towards him slightly out of habit. "It's like when you have a stuffy nose, except my nose isn't stuffy."

"Here," Janet had a small metal tube in one hand. When she opened it Jack made a disgusted noise and held his nose. Janet held the tube under Sam's face. "Can you smell that?"

Sam shook her head. "No… I can't. Not at all."

"For the rest of us who can smell, would you mind putting the lid back on that, Doc?" Jack asked, his nose wrinkled.

Janet closed the tube and waved her hand to dissipate the smell. "Well, I guess that proves my hypothesis."

"And what's that?" Sam asked.

"You're going to loose all your senses." Janet said. "I've got people working on the bacteria, but they haven't found anything yet."

Sam looked worried, so Jack put his arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry, Carter. We'll work something out. Maybe I should go have a word with your dad and the Tok'ra or something."

"That actually might not be a bad idea," Janet said. "They may know how to deal with this…or at least have technology better suited to finding a cure."

Jack stood up. "I'll go talk to Hammond."

"Sir…" Sam began, but stopped.

Jack looked down at her. "What?"

"Nothing."

Jack returned to the infirmary a few hours later, dressed in his BDU's. Janet was anxiously looking over the results from the latest tests.

"Sam's hearing is going, then probably her taste will go, and then her touch." She told Jack.

Jack walked over and sat down next to Sam. "Carter?"

Sam jumped. "Sir? Sorry, I didn't hear you."

"It's ok," Jack said quietly.

"What?"

Jack sighed, leaning closer to Sam. "I said, it's ok."

"Oh right." Sam nodded.

Jack reached over and took Sam's hand in his. "How are you feeling? Besides not being able to smell or see."

"To tell you the truth, Sir," Sam said. "I'm terrified."

"I know." Jack gently squeezed her hand. "Look, Carter, I'm going to talk to the Tok'ra. If they can't help…I…I'll go to the Asgard, and the Nox if I have to to find a cure for you. I won't give up."

"Thank you, Sir." Sam said.

"Um, Carter, there was something else." Jack said. He leaned over so his mouth was next to Sam's ear, not just so she could hear him, but so that they couldn't be overheard by anyone else. "There's something I wanted to tell you…just on the off chance this mission of mine doesn't work. Not that it won't but you know…anyway I'm just –"

"Sir," Sam's voice was soft. "I can't hear you."

Jack sighed heavily. He reached up and put one hand on the back of Sam's head, turning her face towards him.

"Sir…?" Sam said questioningly, even though she knew that if Jack answered, she wouldn't be able to hear him.

Jack responded by leaning in and kissing Sam lightly on her lips. When he pulled away he could see tears running down her cheeks. Jack lightly brushed them away with his thumb.

"Good luck, sir." Sam whispered, her voice choked.

Jack stood then turned and walked out of the infirmary

* * *

Jacob seemed surprised when SG-1 arrived at the Tok'ra hiding place with out Sam.

"What's wrong?" he asked almost immediately.

"Sam's in a bit of trouble," Daniel said.

Jacob's eyes flashed. "What sort of trouble?"

"She's got this nasty infection," Jack explained. "That's…slowly taking out parts of her brain. Right now she can't see hear or smell. We don't know what it's going to do to her eventually, but Doc Fraiser thinks it might…it might kill her."

"Oh no…" Jacob said, putting his hands over his face. "Oh no…"

"Yeah." Jack ran one hand through his hair. "Anyway, we were kind of hoping that your people would have something that could help her."

"I don't know," Jacob said, letting his hands fall to his sides. "I wish I could say…"

"Could we talk to Selmak, maybe?" Daniel asked. "He might know if there's something."

Jacob nodded, looking down. When he looked back up again it was Selmak who spoke. "I have never heard of a disease like this before. It sounds as though it's systematically attacking her from the inside, which means it's intelligent…or it at least has something programmed into it."

"I don't care whether it's intelligent or not," Jack snapped. "I just want to know if you can help us…her."

"Of course." Selmak gave Jack an apologetic look. "Unfortunately I cannot think of anything that would help this specifically. We have many antibiotics that are more advanced then those you would possess, but as to whether or not they will work…"

"We can try." Jack said. "Where can we get some?"

* * *

"Incoming wormhole, sir, it's SG-1."

Hammond stepped forward, looking through the window to the activated stargate. "Open the iris."

SG-1 stepped through, along with Jacob who was carrying a large black case. Hammond hurried down to the gate room to meet them.

"Did they have something?"

"Well…" Jack shrugged. "They have some stuff that might help, but they're not sure."

Hammond nodded. "It won't hurt to try."

"How's she doing?" Jacob asked as they made their way through the halls to the observation room Sam was in.

"See for yourself." Hammond said, gesturing for the airmen to open the door.

Sam was laying on her back on the bed, her hands resting at her sides. One of her hands held on to something.

"What's that?" Jack asked.

"It's something one of the lieutenants rigged up." Janet said, walking over. "It communicates Morse code through a series of pulses. It's the only way we can talk to Sam."

Jacob walked over to the table next to Sam's bed. Picking up the small controller for the Morse code device, he keyed in a message.

"Dad?" Sam said, sitting up.

"What's up with her voice?" Jack asked, watching as Jacob hugged Sam.

Janet looked over at Jack. "Well she can't hear herself. If you've noticed, deaf people who can talk have that slightly muted tone. So what did you find?"

"I brought some Tok'ra antibiotics," Jacob said, simultaneously keying the message to Sam. "Selmak says we can't be sure if they'll work…we've never heard of anything like this before."

Janet was examining the contents of the case. "Selmak will have to show me how to use these."

"Of course." Selmak said, walking over to the case and removing several brightly colored tubes.

"Janet!" Sam said suddenly in a panicked tone.

Janet hurried over to the Morse code controller, keying something in.

Sam's voice shook as she spoke. "I can't feel my feet."

Janet keyed something else in, then looked up and spoke to the others in the room. "She lost her sense of taste while you all were gone. It'll take her a while to loose her sense of touch completely, but…What I'm really worried about is when she looses control of involuntary body functions like breathing or the beating of her heart…"

"We must hurry then." Selmak said.

Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c watched from outside the observation window while Selmak and Janet worked on administering the antibiotics to Sam. Forty-five minutes later Janet looked up to Jack and shook her head, before coming out to talk to them.

"Selmak said that if the medicine was successful, we would have seen results by now." She said despairingly.

Jack scowled. "Ok…on to plan B."

"What's that?" Daniel asked.

"Asgard."

"Oh, right."

"How much time does Major Carter have?" Teal'c asked.

Janet shrugged. "Not much. Sam said she's lost feeling in her lower legs and hands. I put the Morse code receiver against her inner elbow, but we won't be able to communicate with her very much longer. So far her internal workings seem to be fine. And from the monitoring of her brain, I can tell that she'd be perfectly fine physically if the bacteria were gone."

"Well…" Jack sighed. "Keep an eye on her. Do whatever you need to to keep her alive until we get back."

Janet smiled. "You don't have to tell me that."

"Right." Jack turned to Daniel and Teal'c. "Let's go talk to Hammond."

In the briefing room, Hammond sat at the long table with the remaining members of SG-1. "I don't know if I like the idea of us running to our more advanced allies anytime we're stuck with a problem that we have difficulty solving."

"With all due respect, General," Jack said. "This isn't just 'a problem' this is Major Carter's life we're talking about."

"We don't know that for sure."

"We have a pretty damn good idea!"

Hammond sighed. "If you can get in contact with the Asgard, then go ahead. But don't do anything that's going to risk your safety."

"What?" Jack frowned.

"Colonel, I know that your diplomatic skills aren't exactly perfect." Hammond said. "Especially when you're faced with a distressing situation. You've gotten on the Asgard's bad side before."

"I'll let Daniel do the talking." Jack promised.

"Good." Hammond nodded. "Permission granted to go see the Asgard."

A few long hours and several bargaining sessions later, Daniel, Teal'c and Jack stood in a room with several members of the Asgard high council.

"What may we do for you?" one asked.

"One of our team members, Major Samantha Carter, has been infected with a bacterial disease that we can't deal with…" Daniel said. He proceeded to explain the effects of the bacteria to the Asgard, who listened quietly, then spoke among themselves for a moment.

"We cannot help you." The one who had spoken before said bluntly.

Jack stepped forward. "What?"

"We have far more pressing matters to deal with," the Asgard said. "And also, it would be a breach of the Goa'uld Asgard treaty to help you."

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Jack said waving his hand impatiently. "I'm not taking that treaty bull crap again. We're not asking you to help advance our race unnaturally, we're asking for you to save our friend."

"Giving you the means to save Major Carter would be considered, by the Goa'uld, to be advancing your race."

"God damn!" Jack cried, throwing his hands up in the air. "You're just going to let those snake-heads dictate the terms of the treaty to you?"

"Jack-!" Daniel said warningly.

Jack glared at Daniel. "No! I'm sick of hearing people say that they can't do anything to help Carter!" he pointed accusingly at the Asgard. "You know you have the ability to help her. You could probably do it with a snap of your fingers, and yet you won't!"

"Would you risk the safety of hundreds of planets to save the life of one of your friends?" one Asgard asked.

Jack glared at them. "You know what?" he muttered under his breath. "Go to hell." He turned and walked out of the room. Daniel gave the Asgard an apologetic look.

* * *

"What is our next course of action?" Teal'c asked as they sat outside Sam's observation room.

Jack stood by the window, staring down with a worried look on his face. They'd returned to find Sam unable to use any of her senses. Indeed it looked like she was in a coma, except that her eyes were open and blinked, and occasionally she would move ever so slightly. Janet was rushing around, looking at blood samples, conducting tests, and monitoring Sam's vital signs. Jacob had been sitting with Sam most of the time, but a few minutes ago he'd been called away by the Tok'ra.

"What about the Nox?" Daniel suggested. "They can heal just about anything."

"Yeah, well, how are we supposed to get in touch with them?" Jack asked, turning around. "Didn't we tell them to bury their gate?"

"If I remember correctly," Teal'c said. "They have unburied it after prompting by the Tollan."

"Great. Let's go."

It took a little convincing to get Hammond to let them go, as he was beginning to get tired of them going to everyone in the galaxy. But finally he did give in and allow them to travel back to the Nox home world of P3X-774.

"Lya?" Jack called after they'd stepped out of the stargate. "Anybody? Hello? We could use a little help here!"

They waited. Minutes passed. Jack became more impatient and began kicking the ground with the toe of his boot. Suddenly there was a noise behind them and they turned to see the serene Lya standing there.

"Greetings." She said.

"Hey." Jack walked over. "Look, we need your help." He jumped as several other Nox appeared around Lya, watching SG-1 curiously.

"What may we do for you?" Lya asked, a faint smile playing over her lips.

"Look," Jack said. "Our friend, Major Carter, is very sick. She picked up some bacteria that's taking over her brain. We can't help her, and we think she's dying. We've talked to the Tok'ra and the Asgard, and neither of them can or will help us. Please. We just need one of you to come back to Earth and help save her."

The Nox exchanged a few meaningful looks before Lya spoke. "Perhaps, if the great races of the Tok'ra and the Asgard will not help you, they have good reason."

"Well," Daniel said. "The Tok'ra would help, they just can't. And the Asgard feel it would be a breech of their treaty with the Goa'uld to do so."

The Nox still all seemed doubtful. A male stepped forward. "Perhaps the Tau'ri need to learn that sometimes sacrifices must be made, and that sometimes the effort required is too great to prevent them."

Jack stared at them disbelievingly. "But you can help her! I thought you believed in helping everyone! Don't you people have any feelings at all?" The Nox gave each other confused looks.

"Yes, of course we understand feelings," the male said, sounding slightly offended.

"Good." Jack scowled. "Then maybe you understand what it's like to care about someone so much you'll do anything to help them." At this, Daniel raised his eyebrows and looked at Teal'c, who merely stared stonily back.

Lya stepped forward, saying gently, "I can see that you care about Major Carter very much. And I also see that it does not seem such a great task for me to help her. I will come with you."

"Thank you!" Jack said, looking relieved in an almost annoyed way.

Lya turned to the other nox and nodded slowly. The rest of them vanished and Lya followed SG-1 back to the stargate.

* * *

"How long has she been in there with Sam?" Daniel asked, walking over to where Jack stood by the observation window that looked down on Lya and Sam. 

"Hours." Jack replied.

"What's she doing? Doesn't she just have to get rid of the virus and be done with it?"

"I don't know, and frankly, as long as she's helping Carter, I don't care."

They were both silent for a while longer. Jack watched Lya working on Sam, the nox stood with her eyes closed and her hands held out over Sam's prone form. A faint glow issued from under Lya's hands, but other then that, nothing else.

"Um, Jack?" Daniel said quietly. "Can I ask you something?"

"What?"

"What did you mean, back on P3X-774, about caring about someone so much that you'd do anything to help them?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "What do you think I meant?"

"Well, I don't know." Daniel shrugged. "I just thought that maybe…"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Daniel."

"Right."

Lya looked up at them then and smiled, then beckoned with one hand. Daniel and Jack hurried down into the room.

"I have removed the bacteria." Lya said. She pointed to a rack of test tubes. "They are in those, should your own healers wish to study them."

"Why didn't you just destroy them?" Jack asked, frowning.

Lya smiled faintly. "They are very intelligent."

"They're bacteria!" Jack cried.

"They're more then you think." Lya clasped her hands before her. "It will be a great advantage to you to learn of their ways."

Jack shook his head. "Yeah yeah, whatever. How's Carter?"

"She is resting now, but when she awakes she will be fully recovered."

"Good." Jack sighed. "And thank you, again."

Lya bowed.

"Look," Daniel said. "If there's anything you need that we can give you…"

"I require no payment for my services." Lya told them.

"No I just meant…a token of our thanks."

Lya smiled again. "Your words are enough. Now may I return?"

"Yeah, of course." Jack said. "Daniel?"

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "Right. Come on, Lya, I'll take you back to the gate room."

A few minutes after Daniel and Lya left, Janet entered.

"How's Sam doing?"

Jack pulled a chair over to Sam's bed and sat down. "Well, Lya said she'll be fine once she wakes up. Oh, and the bacteria's in those test tubes over there."

Janet bent to examine the test tubes. "Wow. How did she remove them?"

"No idea."

Janet went and bent over Sam, gently opening her eyelids and shining a light into her eyes. "Well, her pupils are dilating, that's a good sign." Sam shifted, mumbling something. Janet turned the light off and put a hand on Sam's cheek. "Sam?"

"Janet?" Sam's voice was weak, but as she opened her eyes it was obvious they were working.

"How are you feeling?"

Sam was looking around the room now. "Better." She turned and saw Jack sitting next to her. "It's good to see you again, sir."

"Yeah I bet it is." Jack said. "Glad to see you're ok."

Sam struggled into a sitting position, but she winced and put a hand to her head. Janet quickly adjusted the pillows so Sam could lean against them. "Your brains been out of function so long," Janet said. "I'm sure you'll have a headache for a little while. I can go find you some pain killers if you want."

"Yeah, that'd be great."

Janet smiled and left the room.

"So, sir, you obviously found a cure." Sam said, turning to Jack.

"Yep," Jack nodded. "The nox were the only ones capable _and_ willing to help you."

"I'll have to thank them."

"Yeah."

"Sir," Sam began quietly.

Jack leaned in a little closer. "What?"

"Before you left, when you were saying goodbye to me…" her voice trailed off, but Jack knew exactly what she was talking about.

"Look, Carter, no one has to know. I just…I thought I was going to loose you."

Sam looked up at him, something strange showing in her eyes. "I understand."

Jack found he didn't trust himself to say anything else, so he patted Sam on the shoulder then stood, mumbling something about going to report to Hammond. With that he turned, and left the room.

To Be Continued…


	2. And So the Search Begins

Part II: And so the search begins

"So, has Doc Fraiser found anything about that bacteria that was inside you?" Jack asked as he sat down across from Sam with his tray of food.

Sam, who had been spooning at a cup of jell-o, looked up furtively at her CO. "Do you enjoy talking about bacteria while you eat, sir?"

Jack regarded the plate of spaghetti before him. "Only if it annoys you."

"Hmm." Sam pushed aside her half eaten jell-o and rested her arms on the table. "Lya said they're intelligent."

"What?" Jack said distractedly.

"The bacteria."

"Oh, right." Jack frowned. "How can they be intelligent? They're too small to have brains."

Sam shrugged. "Well, Janet says they seem like bioengineered nano-bots."

"What?! Carter…"

"They're like nano-bots," Sam said again, slower. "Except they're made from living tissue."

Jack nodded. "Uh-huh." He looked up at Sam, his brow furrowed. "So how'd you get it?"

"The bug that bit me on P3X-427." Sam explained, tapping the side of her neck with one finger. "Janet also put in a request to Hammond that we go back to the planet with HAZMAT gear to see if there's any information about the bacteria."

"You think that's what the meeting later is about?"

"Probably, sir."

* * *

It was, indeed, what the meeting was about. Hammond wanted SG-1 to go on a reconnaissance mission back to P3X-427, to recover information and try to locate any survivors.

"This place feels really eerie," Sam said into the radio on the inside of her HAZMAT suit's helmet. "It's like a ghost town."

"I agree, Carter." Jack said, staring around the deserted streets. "And frankly, the quicker we get in and out, the happier I'll be."

"I think we should go back to that hospital," Daniel said. "There may be notes or something that doctors took before…before they all died."

Jack nodded indistinctly. "Good idea, Daniel. Lets go."

Once in the hospital they decided to split up. Jack had been navigating the twisting hallways for only a moment before Sam's voice crackled over the radio.

"Sir! I'm in the first room we came into the last time we were here…and there's a problem."

Seconds later Jack was at her side in the empty room. "What's the matter, Carter? I don't see anything."

"That's exactly it, sir!" Sam said, turning. "There's nothing here! The room was full of bodies the last time we were here."

Daniel and Teal'c appeared in the doorway.

"Whassamatter?" Daniel said.

Teal'c gazed around the room. "It seems that the bodies have been moved."

"That must be it," Jack said, nodding. "Maybe the survivors came and moved the bodies."

Sam's eyes were wide. "But why, and where?"

Jack shrugged. "How am I supposed to know?"

"Well," Daniel said, holding up a stack of books and papers he'd found. "I did find some notes, they were laying out on a desk, so I'm hoping they're relevant to the current situation – "

"What if they weren't dead?" Sam interrupted.

"Carter," Jack rolled his eyes. "We saw them. They were dead. They didn't just get up and walk…What now?!" For Sam had suddenly jumped, looking behind her.

"Nothing, sir, I just thought I heard something."

But on an outside inspection of the building they found nothing except one of the squirrel-like creatures that was poking around in the garbage heap behind the hospital.

"See, Carter?" Jack said, as though speaking to a child. "It's just a rodent." The creature looked up at them with big brown eyes, then quickly scampered off. "More afraid of you then you are of it."

Sam shot her CO a scathing look. "Shouldn't we be getting back?"

"Shouldn't we look for survivors?" Daniel asked timidly. "I mean, the disappearance of those bodies must prove that there's _someone_ out there."

"Well…" Jack seemed hesitant about remaining on the planet any longer. "I'd rather not stay too long, but lets have a look around anyway."

They walked up and down the empty streets, all the while having the nervous feeling that they were being watched. They all nearly jumped out of their skins when someone stepped out in front of them. It was a tall man with short brown hair, and simple clothes that hung limply about his thin frame. There was something about the way that he moved and watched them that seemed….wrong.

For a moment his lips moved incoherently, and then he spoke. "What are you, strange things?"

"Um," Daniel stepped forward, opening the outer visor on his helmet, so his voice could be heard through the inner, thin one. "We don't actually look like this, we're wearing protective suits. There's a dangerous disease on your planet. That's what's killed everyone."

The man tilted his head to one side. "Who are you?"

"I'm Daniel Jackson," Daniel said. "This is Colonel Jack O'Neill, Major Samantha Carter, and Teal'c…We're humans…Tau'ri. Except for Teal'c, he's a Jaffa."

"You serve the goa'uld?" the man asked, turning to Teal'c.

"I serve the Tau'ri." Teal'c replied flatly.

"We think the goa'uld are a foolish race who don't know anything about what they're doing." The man said.

Jack raised an eyebrow. "I'd call the goa'uld lots of things, but foolish isn't one of them."

"Then you are a weak race indeed, Tau'ri."

"Hey!" Jack said. "We were going to offer to take you back with us so you won't get this disease that killed everyone…"

"We do not need your help, arrogant creatures!" the man shouted in a voice far deeper and louder then seemed possible coming from a body so small.

"Uhhh…sir…"

"I hear you, Carter." Jack was beginning to loose his temper, as was obvious to the rest of SG-1. Jack turned back to the strange man. "Hey, we're just trying to help! And who the hell is this 'we' you keep referring to?"

The man placed his hands on his chest. "Us. We are part of the Paren. And you should be more respectful to your future conquerors, Tau'ri." He suddenly turned to face Sam, a wicked grin on his face. "We are the voice that speaks in the dark, when you're all alone and none of your friends can find you." With that, he turned sharply and walked away.

"Ooookkkaayyy…_that_ was weird." Jack said matter-of-factly. "Now, who's ready to go home?"

Back in the infirmary, Janet noticed that Sam seemed a little put off.

"Is something wrong?" Janet asked.

Sam sighed, resting her chin in one hand. "It's probably nothing, Janet…Just what that man said to me back on P3X-427."

"What did he say?"

" 'We are the voice that speaks in the dark when you're all alone and none of your friends can find you.' " Sam shuddered. "When I lost all feeling…It was like being trapped in this place with no light, no sound…except my own thoughts. And some of those even…weren't my own. They….they were things like what he said, talking about the void and the darkness, voices, my friends not being able to find me…"

Janet reached over and put a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder. "I wouldn't worry about it too much, Sam. I think you were just very frightened, and what you were hearing was just your subconscious over acting. I've never met anyone who was in a situation like yours, so I can only imagine what would be going on in your brain."

"Yeah." Sam sighed, running a hand through her short blond hair. She shook her head. "Anyway, we should be getting up to the briefing room.

* * *

"So I think if Dr. Jackson translates these for me, they should be an invaluable source of knowledge about the bacteria," Janet was saying, examining the papers that SG-1 had brought back. "There are some diagrams and pictures of the bacteria, as well as its path through the body, which alone will be helpful."

"Good." Hammond nodded. "And did you find anything else that would be of use?"

"Well," Jack said, leaning back in his chair. "There was that one creepy guy who didn't seem to want or need our help."

"I think you should go find him again," Hammond said. "Convince him to come back with you. He might not realize the danger he's in."

Sam looked up. "There must be more than just him, though. I mean, we were off world for only a few days…do you think he would have really been able to move all those bodies by himself?"

"It's possible." Jack said.

"Did he appear able to harm any of you?" Hammond asked.

"No, Sir, I don't think he could." Jack replied. "He seemed like a malnourished, crazy, little man."

"Well, don't underestimate him, but I want you all to go back there and try and convince him, or some other survivor to come back with you."

"Yes, and perhaps I can find a reason why they didn't catch the bacteria." Janet put in. "Maybe they have a natural resistance to it."

"Ok. Colonel, get your team ready to go." Hammond nodded to them all. "You're dismissed."

Jack stood up, smiling sarcastically. "C'mon, kids, lets hit the road."

Back to the planet they went, back through the deserted streets, past the empty hospital, searching for any signs of life.

"Someone shoot me if I ever want to do anything with these damn HAZMAT suits again." Jack complained.

"Sir!" Jack turned to see Sam pointing off to the side, where they could see the figure of a small girl crouching over something. Sam went over and knelt next to the girl. "Hey, are you ok?"

The girl looked up at them with big blue eyes. Sam was reminded forcefully of when they'd found Cassie, though this girl was older then Cassie had been. "You are the Tau'ri." The girl said.

"Yeah." Sam nodded, then looked down at what the girl had been bending over. Sam's stomach jolted unpleasantly. It was the body of an older woman. "What are you doing?"

"We're waiting for her to wake up." The girl said.

Sam ignored the girl's use of first person plural and said slowly, "Uhmm…she's dead."

"She'll wake up. We know she will."

"Sir," Sam said, turning to look up at Jack who was watching with raised eyebrows through the visor of his helmet. "I think we should bring this girl back with us."

"We don't want to leave!" The girl cried suddenly. "We don't want to go with the Tau'ri!"

"It's ok!" Sam said, trying to calm the girl. "We're not going to hurt you, we just want to find out why you don't have the disease that everyone else has."

The girl seemed to contemplate this for a moment. "Can we see you without your protective suits?"

"When we get back to our planet." Sam promised.

"What about her?" The girl looked down at the body of the woman.

"We can't do anything for her, I'm sorry."

The girl sighed and stood up, she was very tall for her age, almost as tall as Sam. Walking between Sam and Jack, with Teal'c in front and Daniel behind, the girl went with them back to the stargate.

She seemed slightly frightened when they got to the SGC, perhaps it was the airmen with their guns, though Hammond told them to stand down.

"She was the only person we could find." Sam said, removing her helmet. "And she appears fine."

Hammond nodded. "What's your name?" he asked the girl.

The girl thought a moment. "Jana."

"Well, Jana, I'm going to have Major Carter escort you down to the infirmary so Dr. Fraiser can make sure you're ok."

* * *

Sam was just coming out of the showers when Janet came running up, looking worried.

"Sam!" She said, sounding out of breath. "Jana…she has the bacteria."

"What? Oh god…" Sam grimaced. "How bad is it?"

Janet sighed. "Bad. I did an MRI, it's completely infiltrated her brain. It's even worse then it was when you were completely out of it. The strange thing is she's not showing any symptoms. I've got her in one of the isolation rooms." She gestured for Sam to follow her, and the two women went down to the isolation room where Jana sat, drawing on some paper with crayons.

Jana looked up as Sam entered. "Carter?"

"You can call me Sam." Sam said, sitting down. "How are you feeling?"

"We feel fine," Jana replied. "Why are we in here?"

"Well, you have this bacteria." Sam explained. "And it's really bad for you. So we have you in here so we can keep an eye on you and hopefully find a cure."

"We are not sick." Jana said.

Sam nodded. "Yeah, I know, that's what's weird. Dr. Fraiser found that there's a lot of bacteria in your brain, and -"

"They don't understand us, Sam," Jana said in a strange voice. Sam frowned and Jana leaned closer. "They don't know what its like. They don't know…they haven't heard us. But you have. You can help us." Jana's face was inches away from Sam's now. "Where's the part of us that was removed from you?"

Sam leapt backwards, or at least, she tried to, but Jana grabbed her arm in a surprisingly strong grip.

"Don't leave us, Sam!"

"Let go of me!" Sam cried. She successfully pushed Jana away from her. "Janet!"

Janet came rushing in just as Jana regained her balance and rushed at Sam. At the last second she changed course and shoved Janet into the wall.

"You don't understand!" She shouted. "Tau'ri are stupid! They don't understand us!"

Janet struggled to reach the red button next to the door that would bring help in a second, but Jana held her too strongly in place. Sam rushed forward and grabbed Jana by the shoulders, trying to pry her off the doctor. But Jana was much stronger than she appeared. Letting out an angry growl she turned and shoved Sam, sending her flying across the room. Janet hit the button, the alarm went off.

"No!" Jana shoved past Janet into the hall.

Janet ran over to where Sam lay against the wall, rubbing the back of her head.

"Sam, are you ok?!"

Sam sat up. "Yeah…yeah I'm fine. Where'd she go?"

"Out into the hall." Janet said. "But don't worry, she won't be able to get out of the base."

"Major Carter to the gate room!" An announcement blared through the base. "Repeat; Major Carter to the gate room."

Sam groaned, but got to her feet and hurried to the gate room, where Jana stood before the stargate, glaring at the airmen and General Hammond.

"She says she won't talk to anyone except you." Hammond said.

Sam turned, holding her hands out. "Jana, what do you want?"

"We're not Jana." The girl said. "Jana's long gone. Nothing of the host remains. We've picked that up from the goa'uld, however foolish they are."

"What are you?!" Sam asked, looking alarmed.

"We've told you that already! We're part of the Paren."

Suddenly Janet burst into the gate room and ran up to Hammond.

"Sir, I can't get to the infirmary, level 21's closed off." She panted.

Hammond looked alarmed. "What?"

"I don't know why," Janet said. "I'm going to try calling the infirmary, see if someone can tell me what happened."

Sam turned accusingly towards Jana. "You did that, didn't you? You locked us down here."

"No, you stupid Tau'ri did that to yourself." Jana replied. "Part of us just wanted to be free. Now let us leave!" She suddenly turned towards the door, where Jack had entered, looking dazed.

"Sir…?" Sam said curiously, but Jack didn't respond.

"Open the stargate!" Jana commanded. "We need to return home."

Jack nodded dully. "We agree." He turned and walked up to the control room, shoving airmen out of his way if they dared to get in it.

"Major, come with me." Hammond ordered. He and Sam rushed up to the control room. Jack had just shoved Sergeant Harriman out of his chair, and was now proceeding to dial coordinates into the computer.

"Sir, what are you doing?" Sam asked, Jack ignored her.

"Colonel!" Hammond shouted. "I am ordering you to stop!" Jack ignored him as well.

"Major Carter." Sam turned to see Teal'c standing in the door, looking as worried as the large jaffa ever did. "I believe Colonel O'Neill has been compromised."

"Yeah," Sam said, nodding. "Yeah I realize that."

Hammond had just attempted to stop Jack by force from dialing out, but Jack merely shoved him away, before standing. The whoosh of an opening wormhole came from the gate room. Sam stood stolidly in Jack's way.

"Sir."

"Get out of our way."

"No, Sir."

Jack seemed to think a moment then said, "Carter, we're ordering you to get out of our way!"

"Sir, you're not in your right mind!"

Jack reached out as though to grab Sam. Her body tensed. Jack held his hands out for a moment, as though part of him wanted to throw her across the room and part didn't. However, the former won over and he grabbed her by the shoulders, flinging her like a rag doll out of his way. Luckily, Teal'c moved quickly and caught Sam before she smashed into a bank of machinery.

"Are you all right, Major Carter?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Sam said hurriedly. "Come on!" They hurried back down to the gate room where Jack and Jana were walking up the ramp towards the stargate. Several airmen had their guns trained on the two figures.

"Colonel," Hammond said over the speaker system from the control room. "I'm ordering you not to go through that stargate!" But Jack continued walking. When he and Jana were nearly at the event horizon they stopped and turned.

One of the airmen looked expectantly at Sam.

"Wait, don't do anything." Sam ordered.

Jana clasped her hands in front of her. "You'll see us again, under less pleasant circumstances." With that, she and Jack both entered the wormhole.

Hammond appeared moments later holding a sheet of paper. "These are the coordinates that Colonel O'Neill dialed into the computer."

"I don't recognize these." Sam said, frowning. She suddenly looked up at Teal'c. "Where's Daniel?"

"I left him in the hall in the care of Dr. Fraiser," Teal'c told her. "He was injured while trying to stop Colonel O'Neill."

* * *

"Will someone please explain to me what is going on here?!" Hammond demanded of those seated before him.

Teal'c, Sam, Janet and Daniel, whose arm was heavily bandaged, were all seated around the table in the briefing room, looking worried.

"Levels 20 and 21 are sealed off," Janet said. "From what I could make out over the phone, the tubes of the bacteria from Sam just…exploded…and the bacteria went from liquid to air born in seconds. Luckily, I think they were able to seal off those levels, including the air vents, before the bacteria spread. But it appears that Colonel O'Neill slipped through."

Sam nodded. "And if he did, others could have too."

"So what is this bacteria doing to people?" Hammond asked. "Obviously not the same things it did to Major Carter."

"Actually," Janet laced her fingers together and frowned slightly. "It is…just much quicker. I don't know if it's because the bacteria is more developed, or because of the protein marker in Sam's blood. But, as I was talking to my assistant over the phone, he said those infected are showing the same symptoms that Sam did, and seconds after they loose all senses they're vitals stop, and then they go back up again. And the person's behaving strangely, saying 'we', referring to themselves as part of the 'paren'…"

"So these bacteria are actually taking over the people and controlling them?"

Janet frowned even deeper. "I believe so. I think they're doing something similar to the goa'uld, except they're bacteria rather then symbiots."

Hammond looked thoughtful. "Well, I'm ready to declare a foothold situation. I've already sealed off the base, no one is to leave or enter except through the stargate. I think we can assume that any infected persons will attempt to leave that way, possibly to the same place that Colonel O'Neill and the girl went."

"Sir," Sam said. "I request permission to form a search party for Colonel O'Neill."

"Let's send a MALP to the planet, check out the situation. Then we can talk about forming a search party." Hammond got to his feet. "I'm going to order a sweep of the levels we have access to. Any infected persons found will be taken to Dr. Fraiser. Dr. Fraiser, I want you to examine any evidence you get to try and find a cure for this. Major, you can supervise sending the MALP through. Dismissed."

A short while later Sam, Daniel and Teal'c stood in the control room, examining the readouts from the MALP.

"The planet looks safe," Sam said, squinting at the screens. She pointed to the visual. "It looks like mostly forest around the stargate, but you can see what looks like the outline of buildings in the distance." Sam panned the video right, and a small stone building came into view.

"That does not appear to be of goa'uld design." Teal'c observed.

"Well, we know they're not goa'ulds." Daniel said, frowning slightly. He turned to see General Hammond standing behind them. "Oh, General…"

"We found one infected airman." Hammond told SG-1. "He's with Dr. Fraiser right now. How do the readings look?"

"MALP telemetry shows the planet to be perfectly fine," Sam gestured at the readings.

Hammond nodded. "Permission to form a search party granted. Be ready to leave in half an hour."

"Yes sir." Sam gestured for SG-1 to follow her.

The area around the stargate appeared deserted when SG-1 first stepped through, though as they continued, weapons held at the ready, three women came out of the building, each holding a small hand held device.

"Stop." The three women said in unison.

"Ok, that's a little weird…" Daniel muttered.

Sam stepped forward, lowering her weapon slightly. "We don't want to hurt anyone…we're just looking for a friend of ours."

"Who?" the women asked.

"Colonel Jack O'Neill." Teal'c said. The women all turned to look at him. Teal'c raised an eyebrow.

"We hold no prisoners here." The women said. "We are no separate beings here."

Sam groaned inwardly and rolled her eyes. "Wait, let me guess, you're part of the paren."

The women simultaneously raised the hand held devices, pointing them at Sam. "If you are here to destroy us, you will find that impossible."

Sam raised her zat gun and fired once at the woman in the center. The other two each got off one shot before they were stunned. The women's shots flew past Sam's head into the woods behind them.

"Okay…" Sam said, her eyes wide. "Let's go find Colonel O'Neill."

They walked for fifteen minutes through the forest before coming to the outskirts of a large city. Sam frowned, peering out through some foliage. She could see people moving.

"Daniel, Teal'c, come look at this." She said.

Teal'c stepped up along side her and looked out. "I see people, Major Carter."

"Yeah, but look, they're all moving in groups, and each of the groups are taking steps at the same time, and their arms are moving at exactly the same time."

"I see what you mean," Daniel said. "Ok, this is getting weirder by the second."

"Ok." Sam chewed her lip thoughtfully. "I don't think there's going to be anyone we can ask about Colonel O'Neill, so…lets go around the perimeter of the city, find some way to get in without being seen."

They moved as quietly as possible through the underbrush until they came to a narrow alley between two buildings. Sam led them through to the entrance, where they could watch the groups of people passing. Suddenly, however, one group stopped, all turning to face SG-1.

"You are looking for your friend." They said.

Sam gaped at them. "How did you know?"

"You told us."

"Apparently they have a shared consciousness," Daniel explained quietly.

"We do." The people nodded. "And you are our prisoners." As one they raised more of the same weapons as the women had had. Sam whirled around, only to see more people walking up the alleyway behind them.

"Well…now what?" Daniel asked. They were sitting in a locked storage room in one of the large buildings. Teal'c was walking around the room looking for some way out, and Sam was leaning against one of the storage containers, thinking. When Daniel got no response to his question, he tried another one. "Do you think they'll try to infect us with the bacteria?"

"I don't know," Sam said. "I mean, if that's what the Paren wanted, I think we'd be infected by now."

"Perhaps the Paren knows that my symbiot will not allow it to infect me." Teal'c offered.

Sam shrugged. "That may be, but it still doesn't explain me and Daniel."

Teal'c went back to his pacing. Daniel stood up and opened one of the boxes stacked against the wall.

"Well, at least we know we won't freeze to death…." He let the box fall shut despairingly. Teal'c gave him a perplexed look and Daniel gestured towards the box. "Blankets."

The doors to the room slid open and two guards entered, holding the zat guns taken from Sam and Daniel.

"Stand!" The guards commanded. Sam got to her feet, walking over to Daniel and Teal'c. "Follow us." One guard started off down the hall, and the other herded SG-1 after.

"Where are you taking us?" Sam demanded.

"To the Servant Mind." Both guards replied. "He wishes to deal with you in person."

To Be Continued…


	3. A Simple Plan

Part III: A Simple Plan

The Servant Mind was humanoid, like a very old man; though his skin was so pale it appeared almost translucent. He watched the three humans approach him, his icy blue eyes seeming to take in every little detail.

"Well, well, well," his voice was as dry and raspy as old paper. "Major Samantha Carter, Doctor Daniel Jackson, and Teal'c. This is a…special honor."

"Do we know you?" Sam asked, narrowing her eyes.

"No, but I know everything about you. At least, everything Colonel O'Neill knows." He winked at Sam. "And I mean everything."

"Where is O'Neill?" Teal'c demanded.

The man chuckled. "You think I'll tell you? All in good time, my prizes, all in good time."

Sam scowled. "Prizes?"

"Oh yes," the old man clasped his veined hands together. "You won't believe how eager I am to add the knowledge of SG-1 to the repository of the paren. Perhaps I'll finally be able to wipe out those pesky, parasitic goa'uld!"

"Wait." Daniel held up his hand. "We want to destroy the goa'ulds as well…wouldn't it make more sense for you to join with us rather than just taking our knowledge?"

"I have no desire to ally the paren with a race as young and foolish as the tau'ri!" the man spat. "You're even less advanced than the goa'uld! My whole goal in bringing the paren to this galaxy was to bring its inhabitants under the New Celestial Order."

Sam was about to ask what exactly the New Celestial Order was, but Daniel opened his mouth first. "Wait, so you control the paren?"

The man nodded. "I do."

"So why did they call you the _servant_ mind?

"Because," the man said heavily, "I am a servant...a servant to this creation. Do you realize how difficult it is to keep track of thousands of consciousnesses? To file away all the new knowledge? If I so much as get distracted for a second the disease will go crazy and destroy thousands. You yourselves saw what happened on that planet." He sighed. "But you are boring me, tau'ri. So…what to do with you?" he seemed to regard the three before him. "Teal'c, there is no hope of you being infected…so I think I may just offer you up to the system lords in exchange for something. I know how they long to see you again! Major Carter, much as I would like to have access to your amazing mind, I'm afraid the bacteria's natural defense system doesn't allow it to inhabit a being it failed to inhabit the first time, so I'm afraid I'll have to do away with you. But, Daniel Jackson. You. You will become one of us."

The two guards stepped up on either side of Sam and Teal'c. Without hearing the orders, they seemed to know what to do, and led them back to the storage room.

Teal'c looked over at Sam, who was sitting with her knees drawn up to her chest. "Do not worry, Major Carter," Teal'c said. "I do not think they will be able to destroy you."

Sam managed a weak smile. "Thanks Teal'c, but they've kinda got us out numbered." She suddenly frowned, then pointed to the corner of the room. "Hey, are those our BDU's?"

Teal'c walked over and examined the pile. "Indeed they are…though our weapons are missing."

There was a burst of static, and Hammonds voice. "SG-1, come in."

"General Hammond." Teal'c said, picking up the radio. "We are here."

"Thank God," Hammond said. "We've been trying to reach you."

Sam walked over and took the radio. "Daniel's been captured, Sir. I think he's going to be injected with the virus."

"I need to tell you something, Major, and we don't have much time before the wormhole closes itself, so I'll be brief. Dr. Fraiser's taken on the bacteria, but she did discover by pure accident that the bacteria is destroyed by a single shot from a zat gun."

Sam groaned. "It _would_ be that simple!"

"That's what we all were thinking," Hammond said. "Anyway, the only thing with that is you must wait until the person is fully taken over, otherwise it has no effect."

"Thank you, sir," Sam replied. "Now at least we know what to do with the Colonel and Daniel once we get a hold of them. But sir-"

"We're approaching the 38 minute mark, Major, so I have to sign off."

"Sir, Teal'c and I are-" but the connection was dead. Sam let out a sigh. She had just set the radio down when the doors opened and there stood…Daniel and Jack.

"Speak of the devil." Sam said, turning and putting her hands on her hips.

Teal'c raised an eyebrow. "I do not remember you and General Hammond discussing any devils."

Sam shot him a look, then turned to Daniel and Jack. "What?"

"We bring words from the Servant Mind." They said in unison. "Jaffa, your system lord will be arriving shortly to collect you. Before then, you will witness your friend Major Carter killed at our hands. In the meantime we will be standing guard. Do not try to escape." They turned, and the doors closed.

"Wonderful." Sam said.

"I will not let them kill you." Teal'c folded his arms over his chest.

"It won't come to that," Sam assured him. "I've got a plan…though it's a rather simple one, and it probably won't work..."

"Colonel O'Neill would be proud of you."

Sam snorted and shook her head. "You're getting better at that."

* * *

"Guards!" Teal'c cried, pounding on the door. "Open the door!"

The door slid open, Daniel and Jack stared blankly at Teal'c. "What is it?"

"Something has happened to Major Carter." Teal'c said, pointing to where Sam lay on the floor.

Jack and Daniel went over to Sam and bent down. "She appears fine…" they said seconds before Sam knocked them both backwards, wrestling the zat gun out of Daniel's hands. Teal'c wrestled the zat away from Jack, then quickly fired at Daniel who was trying to get his weapon away from Sam.

Sam looked down at Jack. "I'm sorry, sir." She fired at Jack and he fell back. A second later he put his hands over his face.

"Holy crap, Carter!" he groaned. "Under any other circumstances I would so have you court-martialed for that!"

"I'm sorry, Sir." Sam said again. "It was the only way to kill the bacteria."

Daniel sat up, blinking. "So you guys figured it out?"

"Actually Janet worked it out, Hammond was able to contact us through the radios."

"Oh, right," Daniel nodded. "Hey, look, we've got a bit of a problem. I still remember some of the stuff we were ordered to do and what the Servant Mind was planning on doing…"

"Yeah, me too." Jack said, frowning and putting a hand to his head. "He's setting a trap for the system lords."

Sam looked surprised. "What?"

"Yeah, and Teal'c is the bait." Daniel said. "The servant mind is going to get a hold of all the system lords he can and tell them he's got Teal'c, and that they're welcome to him."

"So a bunch of the system lords come here," Jack put in. "And then…"

"He destroys them?" this was Sam.

"No," Daniel shook his head. "He gets some of his buddies to do that for him."

"His buddies?"

"You're not going to like this." Daniel closed his eyes, rubbing his temples as though trying to remember. "Ok, I'll start at the beginning of what I…learned."

Jack sat down and leaned against a box. "I'll let you handle this, Daniel."

"Thanks." Daniel opened his eyes a fraction to glare at Jack. "Ok. So. These paren are a really ancient race. Older then the goa'uld. And they're not exactly our neighbors."

"So, pretty much," Jack put in. "They were born a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away."

"I thought you were going to let me handle this." Daniel said, annoyed. "Anyway, this galaxy that the paren are from…is from…whatever, is home to a load of other races obviously. And there's this one…called the Riven. Let's just say they're really smart, and really…"

"Evil." Jack suggested.

"Yeah. Evil."

"So, we're in the middle of this huge trap set for the system lords, which includes this powerful, ancient…evil…race that we've never seen before?" Sam asked.

"You got it, Carter." Jack said, sounding unperturbed.

"Well, sir," Sam turned to him. "How are we supposed to get back?"

"Simple." Jack said. "We take a couple of zats and shoot anyone who tries to get in our way. That way not only are we unstoppable, we also free a bunch of the people."

"That's so…simple." Sam said, gesturing vaguely in the air. "It sounds too easy."

Jack rolled his eyes. "And whose brilliant idea was it to fake sick and then attack us? Look, my idea will work. There's nothing worse than a bunch of paren infested people out there, and they can't do anything against us once we zap them."

"It just might work." Sam sighed. "It's just…"

"Just what?" Jack narrowed his eyes.

"Nothing, sir, nothing."

* * *

For the most part their plan worked, at least for the first part of the journey back to the stargate. But as SG-1 moved closer and closer to the Stargate, more and more of the paren-infected people massed around them, trying to force them back to the city. They were all chanting the word "Stop!" over and over again.

"God, can't they at least find something else to say?" Jack complained.

"Sir!" Sam called, trying to keep people off their back. "We only have two zat guns! We're not going to make it."

"I can see the stargate!" Jack said. "We're almost there!"

"Daniel, take the zat gun!" Sam cried. "Hurry!"

Jack frowned, half turning. "Carter? Carter!!"

Sam was being pulled away from the group by the people. She threw her zat gun and Daniel caught it. "Sir, get to the stargate! I'll come later!"

"No!" Jack cried. "We're not leaving you, Carter!" But Sam was gone, swept away by the tide of people. Jack swore loudly.

"Jack!" Daniel had made it to the DHD device and was dialing home with one hand while keeping the people back with the other. Jack caught up with him and quickly dialed the iris code.

"You two go." He said as Teal'c arrived at their side. "I'm going back for Carter."

"O'Neill, they will attempt to kill you." Teal'c said.

"Which is exactly what they'll do to Carter if I don't do something!" Jack shouted.

"I will not permit you." Teal'c said stolidly. "I believe we will be able to help Major Carter more if we return and bring help."

"Uhh, guys," Daniel said, firing his zat gun over and over. "I hate to break this up, but we don't exactly have time to argue about this."

"I –" Jack began, but was cut off as Teal'c grabbed him and dragged him back to the stargate.

* * *

"General, I want to go back there right _now_ and get Carter!" Jack said angrily.

Hammond regarded him thoughtfully. "I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Jack. Not until we learn more about these Riven, or indeed the paren themselves."

Jack slammed his hands down on the table. "Carter's out there!"

"I know." Hammond nodded. "We're going to open a wormhole and try contacting her over the radio. Dismissed." Hammond went back down to the control room, but Jack remained in his seat, staring broodingly at the table.

"Is something wrong, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked, walking over to stand behind Jack's chair.

"Yeah." Jack growled. "Carter risked her neck coming after me, and she didn't even know for sure I was in danger. Now I know she's about to be killed and I can't do a god damn thing!"

Daniel had been chewing on his lip thoughtfully, and when he spoke it was in a quiet tone. "I bet they won't kill her. They'll probably just use her to try and find where we went."

"Oh that makes me feel a lot better!" Jack cried.

"Major Carter is a strong warrior," Teal'c reasoned. "She will not be harmed easily."

"I hope you're right, Teal'c." Jack muttered. "I really hope you're right."

Hours passed. They weren't successful at contacting Sam over the radio so they opened the wormhole to get MALP telemetry, but saw nothing but hundreds of people milling around the stargate. Then they saw the Jaffa. They were able to get a close enough look to see that there were more then one system lords present. When they tried again a little later, Teal'c pointed to a figure moving through the crowd.

"That is neither jaffa nor system lord." He said.

Jack, peering over Teal'c's shoulder, frowned. "What is that?"

"I do not know." Teal'c replied.

"Zoom in on it." Hammond ordered.

It was tall, and wore black robes. When they caught sight of it's face, everyone gasped. It wasn't like anything they'd seen before. The only resemblance of a human face was the positioning of the eyes, nose and mouth. But it looked deformed, some gory hybrid of snake, horse and human.

"I bet that's a Riven." Daniel said. "And it doesn't look friendly."

"And Carter's stuck there with them?" Jack said, his eyes narrowed.

The Riven was approaching the MALP, and another soon joined it. They crouched down and peered at it, jabbering in some strange language. Then the first looked right in the camera and said. "Do you speak this language?"

Hammond frowned, leaning into the microphone. "Yes. Who is this?"

"I am Ghalak, high council member of the Riven. Am I correct in assuming I'm speaking with members of the tau'ri?"

"Yes you are," Hammond replied. "I am General Hammond of the United States Air Force. I believe you have one of my officers, Major Samantha Carter."

The two Riven seemed to consult with each other, then Ghalak turned back to the MALP. "Yes. We have her."

"I demand that you release her immediately!" Hammond said.

The Riven made a noise that must have been laughter, but sounded like nails on a chalkboard. "Release her? She belongs to us now."

Jack suddenly grabbed the microphone away from Hammond. "This is Colonel O'Neill, Major Carter's commanding officer. What the hell do you mean she belongs to you now?"

"The Servant Mind of this planet traded her to us in exchange for our help in disposing of the minor threat of the goa'uld system lords." The Riven said. "By the laws governing our confederation, she is property of Kharon, leader of the Riven."

"No!" Jack snarled. "She does _not_ belong to you! And if you don't return Carter to us RIGHT NOW you will regret it."

The Riven made the laughing noise again. "You have no power over us. Shall I demonstrate? I will close the stargate, by my own power." He stood up, waved one hand, and the gate closed.

"Property?" Jack said. "Are they telling me that my second in command was just sold into slavery in a galaxy god knows how many light years away?"

"We must think of a way to retrieve her." Teal'c said.

"Yeah." Jack agreed. "And it ain't gonna be simple."

To Be Continued…


	4. A Long Way From Home

Part IV: A long way from home

Jack had been pacing the briefing room like a caged lion for the past half hour. Daniel and Teal'c had long since returned to their quarters for the night, but Jack remained up, impatiently waiting for news from the Tok'ra, who had been contacted a while ago. Jack turned when he heard the door open.

"Colonel, go to bed," Hammond said, walking over.

"I'd rather not." Jack replied, staring through the large plate glass windows to the gate room. "I don't think I could sleep anyway."

Hammond sighed. "Look, I understand that you're concerned about Major Carter, we all are. But you being half-dead from lack of sleep isn't going to help us any when we do figure out how to rescue her."

"I'm just worried it's going to be too late." Jack muttered.

* * *

The next day Jacob and two other tok'ra came to the SGC. Jacob looked slightly annoyed, but mostly worried. 

"Where's Sam?" he asked as the tok'ra and SG-1, along with Hammond, sat in the briefing room.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Hammond said. "She's been captured by some creatures called Riven."

Suddenly Selmak spoke; "We have heard of the Riven, though never seen any in this galaxy. I believe the Asgard have dealt with them before."

"Yeah, well, they're here." Jack said. "And they've got your daughter."

"My host's daughter." Selmak corrected.

"Whatever!" Jack rolled his eyes. "The point is she's been captured, and we have no idea where they've taken her."

"I believe that your best chance at rescuing Major Carter," Selmak continued. "Would be to speak with the Asgard. As I've said, they have dealt with the Riven before, and have knowledge of their technology."

"Are you sure they'd help us? You know, it could be breaking their precious treaty with the goa'uld." Jack sneered.

"Jack," Jacob was speaking now. "Go talk to the Asgard. They will help you. I'm sure this isn't in any violation of any treaty."

Jack looked up at Hammond. Hammond nodded. "SG-1, you have permission to return to the K'tau planet and get a hold of the Asgard. But I'm not making any promises, if the danger is too great I will not release you to go on this mission."

Jack opened his mouth to argue, but seemed to decide against it, so he simply nodded.

K'tau hadn't changed much, and SG-1 was soon able to get in contact with Freyr, who seemed slightly surprised to see them.

"What can I do for you?" Freyr asked.

Jack sighed. "We need to ask you about a race called the Riven. They've captured Major Carter."

Freyr regarded them silently for a moment then said, "This is a matter for the council. If the Riven have indeed captured one of yours, they are in a direct violation of a peace treaty between our galaxies. Step onto the platform, all three of you, and I will bring you up to our ship."

SG-1 found themselves faced with the Asgard high council, all of whom seemed more agitated then the little grey aliens usually did. They were jibbering to each other, but turned when SG-1 appeared.

"Tell us everything on how you came in contact with the Riven." Freyr said.

And so Daniel told them. Everything from Sam becoming infected with the bacteria known as Paren, to her current capture by the Riven.

"And," he concluded. "The Tok'ra told us that you've dealt with the Riven before."

"Indeed we have," Freyr said. "The Riven represent their galaxy in a intergalactic council. We represent ours. There's been a peace treaty signed between ourselves and the Riven, who also represent a group known in your language as the New Celestial Order. One part of the treaty states that the Riven are not allowed to take unwilling prisoners from our galaxy, though they are allowed to influence beings in our galaxy to join their cause."

"And I can tell you one thing for sure," Jack stepped forward. "Carter would never want to join them."

"We understand that," One of the Asgard said. "Which is why we will help you to rescue your friend. They're capture of her has essentially rendered the treaty void as of now."

Daniel raised his eyebrows. "Wow…thanks."

"I never thought your guys' obsession with treaties would come in handy," Jack muttered. Suddenly he looked up, frowning. " Wait…you mean you guys can't just beam her out of there?"

"Their technology is too advanced, our transportation devices will not work on their battle ships, some of which are the size of planets." Freyr said. "We can get you to where Major Carter is, but _you_ will have to bring her back."

"Well, I guess that's better then nothing," Jack said, nodding. "When do we leave?"

"First, we must train you to understand the Riven. That will take a while."

Jack tensed. "We don't have a while!"

"We are fairly sure that the Riven will not kill Major Carter, though you are correct, we should hurry." Freyr stood up. "If you will follow me, we can begin your…briefing."

* * *

"Hey, Daniel, how's it going?" Jack asked, walking into the room where Daniel sat before a screen.

"This is…unbelievable." Daniel said, staring at the screen. "I can't even describe what this…writing, for lack of a better word…is like. Come look at this."

Jack walked over and stood behind Daniel's chair, squinting at the screen. "I don't see anything."

"Keep looking."

"Whoa!" Jack said. "What is it?"

"It's the Riven's written system." Daniel replied, turning to look up at Jack. "Except it's not like any writing I've seen before. It's not something you can just…see…you have to actually…I don't know. It's far beyond anything we've got. Thor said it somehow directly sends the writing to your brain without you actually seeing it. So what have you learned?"

"Oh," Jack shrugged. "They've got me looking at schematics and layout plans of the Riven ships. Freyr wasn't exaggerating…those things are huge. Big, bad, and ugly. I'm trying real hard not to imagine what they're doing to Carter."

"Yeah," Daniel sighed. "From what I've learned of Riven culture…they're not nice. They're arrogant to a point of thinking anything below them should be treated like pets and nothing more."

"Well that doesn't sound too bad," Jack said.

Daniel gave Jack a pointed look. "I didn't tell you what the Riven definition of 'pet' is."

"Oh."

The members of SG-1 were given a quick crash course on Riven culture, writing, military tactics, weapons and technologies. Looking at the type of ship that Kharon would be on, they were able to figure out where Sam would be located, and formulate a plan to get onto the ship. The Asgard were in possession of a couple Riven transport vehicles, and while they were a source of invaluable technology, they were willing to let SG-1 use one to get onto the Riven ship.

Once they got on the ship they were to get Sam, and then get back to the hanger bay. If the ship was still there they would use it to get back to the Asgard ship. If it wasn't, they would contact Thor who would send another ship in to get them.

"Now wait," Jack said as Thor went over the plan with them again. "This plan seems really easy. Too easy, even for me. If these Riven are so high tech then won't they catch us easy as can be?"

"That's exactly our reasoning," Thor said. "The Riven will be expecting us Asgard to launch a full scale rescue, so you may be able to slip in without them worrying. They will not be expecting something as simple as you."

"Well…" Jack seemed to be considering if this was a compliment or insult. "That's good, I guess."

* * *

Jack realized, as he sat in the pilot seat of a Riven transport vehicle, that he didn't really like this mission. Part of it was he was worried what sort of state Carter would be in when they found her, part was worried that they wouldn't find her at all. And he also realized that he was none too fond of being galaxies away from Earth.

"You know what I realized?" he said, watching out the side window as the Asgard ship slowly left his range of view.

Teal'c turned, raising an eyebrow. "What is that, O'Neill?"

"Each time we go out on a mission, I remember just how insignificant and tiny and stupid we are compared to everything else out there."

Teal'c said nothing, returning to the controls before him. They continued on for over half an hour until they were well out of view of the Asgard ship. Suddenly, Jack pointed out the front window.

"I think that's our target."

Daniel, who had just entered the cockpit, walked over and squinted. "Is that the Riven ship?"

As they drew closer they could see that the object was a spaceship hundreds of times the size of their own transport. It was roughly egg shaped, and the outside was jet black, dotted with windows so that it almost blended in with the space around it.

"That would be it," Jack said. "And there…" he pointed towards two large doors slightly to the left of their current course. "Looks like the transport bay."

A voice crackled over the intercom system. Jack looked up at Daniel, whose eyes were narrowed in concentration. "They're asking for our ID code." He reached around Jack to the control panel and punched a few buttons. A second later the same crackly voice said something, and the doors on the Riven ship opened.

"Nice work." Jack said to Daniel.

There was no one waiting for them in the huge vehicle bay. SG-1 quickly moved into the shelter of a hallway.

"Ok," Jack said, checking his weapons. "They probably know we're here, because, according to the Asgard, these Riven see _everything_ that goes on in their ship. So, they'll be tracking us to see what we're up to."

"Then we have limited time to locate Major Carter." Teal'c said.

"Yep." Jack looked around, trying to get his bearings. He pointed down the hall. "This way."

It took them a long time to navigate through the twisting, pristine hallways, carefully avoiding the groups of black robed Riven that were also there.

"You'd think that if we were so little a threat to them, they'd just squash us." Daniel muttered.

"Always the optimist, aren't we, Daniel?" Jack said, straining his ears for any sound of approaching Riven. "Anyway, we could be so little of a threat that they don't want to bother with us. It's probably like a few ants getting loose in the SGC. Anyway, besides getting Carter back, there's not much we _can_ do to the ship, so they probably don't need to worry."

"Yeah, but-"

"Shhh!" Jack held up one hand, then quickly motioned for Teal'c and Daniel to move back. They did so just in time to avoid a group of Riven marching purposefully down the hall. One was speaking to the others in their grating language.

"I think that they're looking for us," Daniel explained after the Riven passed. "They know we're here somewhere. But, Jack, I thought you said they know exactly where we were. These guys obviously don't." He and Teal'c both turned to Jack expectantly.

"Well…" Jack stammered. "I don't know! I wasn't paying attention to everything the Asgard were saying…just the important stuff." He started off down the hall. "Come on."

They had to go down several levels before reaching the level with what appeared to be holding cells. A great deal of them were empty, the doors standing open to reveal plain white chambers with a single platform in the center of them.

"God, there must be hundreds of these rooms," Jack groaned as they rounded a corner to see yet another hallway stretching into the depths of the ship, its walls lined with doors.

"Uhm, Jack," Daniel said from where he stood before one of the closed doors. He was staring at the small rectangular screen on the door. "I think she's in here."

Jack and Teal'c joined him. "Oh really?" Jack said.

"Yeah. It pretty much says that the tau'ri prisoner is in here, and that the…I can't translate that word…should be kept on high." Daniel's eyes went a little wider. "It looks like 'life support' or 'medical support' or something like that. It has something to do with the aspect of keeping the body in full working order."

"Ok, ok," Jack was beginning to get impatient. He had the horrible feeling that they were about to get caught just as they located Sam. "Can you get the door open?"

"Yeah…door open…" Daniel said distractedly.

"Hurry!" Jack hissed. He could hear voices down the hall.

Daniel reached down, never taking his eyes off the screen, and pressed some parts on the lower half of the door. It slid open, and SG-1 hurried inside, shutting off the door.

Jack turned around, and felt his heart leap into his mouth. "Oh, god damn…"

To Be Continued….

A/N – Just wanted to thank everyone for their reviews :D Makes me feel wonderful. I'm glad you all like it, and hope you continue to do so


	5. Saving Major Carter

Part V: Saving Major Carter

"Carter!" Jack said, rushing over to the bed. It was indeed Sam laying on it, though she didn't look too good; her clothing was ripped and torn and she had numerous cuts and bruises all over. Jack bent over and put a hand on Sam's cheek. "Carter, can you hear me?"

Sam's eyes fluttered open. "Sir?"

"I'm here." Jack said quietly.

"No," Sam mumbled, closing her eyes. "I'm dreaming again."

Jack leaned a little closer. "No, I'm really here. Daniel and Teal'c are too, we came to rescue you."

Sam opened her eyes again, though it looked like it took a lot of effort. When she spoke her voice was strained "I hope so…" She suddenly winced, sucking in her breath sharply.

"Daniel," Jack said, looking up. "We've got to get her out of here!"

"Actually," Daniel said. "We might have a problem. You see, this room is helping to keep Sam alive. From what this says," he gestured to a screen on the wall. "It seems like an advanced version of the goa'uld sarcophagus."

Jack scowled. "I think we might just have to risk it…Carter," he looked back down at Sam. "Can you walk?"

Sam shook her head weakly. "Sir…I…I can barely stay conscious."

"Damn," Jack looked frustrated. "If I carry you, can you at least make it back to the Asgard ship?"

"Maybe…"

"Ok." Jack said. "Daniel, when I tell you, you need to open that door fast. We're going to have to high-tale it back to the hanger ASAP."

Daniel nodded.

Jack crouched down next to the bed. "Carter, put your arms around my neck." Sam obliged, but as Jack lifted her she let out a sharp cry. Jack swore loudly.

"I'll be fine, sir." Sam said in a strained voice, tears leaking out of the corner of her eyes. "I'll be fine."

"I doubt that." Jack muttered under his breath. Moving as carefully and quickly as he could he went to the door. "Ok, Daniel, open the door."

Daniel did so, and they moved out into the empty hallway. They paused before entering the main hall that theirs intersected with, for they could hear the noises of a large group of Riven moving down he hall.

"Uh oh." Daniel said after they'd passed.

Jack turned his head. "Daniel, don't ever say that. Especially not when we're on an alien space ship thousands of light years from home."

"Jack," Daniel looked worried. "They know she's gone. That group was returning to their…I think control room…to lock onto our position."

"Shit." Jack growled. "Lets move it."

As they hurried back up towards the hanger, Jack would occasionally move the wrong way and cause Sam to let out a whimper of pain. Jack desperately wanted to stop and make sure Sam was ok, but he also knew that his only chance to get Sam, and indeed all of them, out of there alive was to keep moving and just hope he wasn't doing more damage than help.

"O'Neill," Teal'c said, falling behind to Jack's side. "If you wish, I am able to carry Major Carter."

"No, I'm fine." Jack said, shaking his head, and shifting Sam's weight against him. She'd fallen back into unconsciousness, her head lolling back and her arms hanging loosely about Jack's neck. Jack looked down for a moment, feeling his stomach churn unpleasantly as he studied Sam's bruised and blood-smeared face. Looking back up, Jack saw the doors to the hanger about fifty feet down the hall. "We're almost there!"

Daniel rushed a head and began attempting to open the doors. Teal'c turned around, lowering his staff weapon.

"We must move quickly," Teal'c said. "More Riven approach."

A few Riven rounded the corner. Teal'c fired at them with his staff-weapon, though it took a couple shots to down one Riven, and more were coming. Teal'c called that he wouldn't be able to hold them off much longer. Jack tried unsuccessfully to hold Sam and fire his zat gun at the same time.

"Got it!" Daniel said, and the doors slid open. Jack was the first through; trying hard not to jostle Sam more than was necessary.

Their transport ship was still there, and Daniel shut the door to the hanger seconds before the Riven opened fire. Their weapons, however, were quickly heating up the door and as Jack shot a glance over his shoulder he saw that the door was beginning to glow red-hot.

"Daniel, I need you to pilot the ship so I can look after Carter," Jack ordered as Teal'c started up the engines. Daniel nodded and took the co-pilots seat. Jack lay Sam down at the back of the cockpit, taking off his jacket and folding it under her head.

"Jack!" Daniel said as the ship shook. "We're under fire!"

Jack looked up from where he was rooting around for a first-aid kit. "Well take off then!"

"I believe the only thing keeping us alive is that we are using the Riven's own technology against them." Teal'c said.

"Thanks, Teal'c, I'll be sure to think about that later. Daniel!"

"I'm going!" Daniel punched in the signal to open the doors, and they shot out of the ship.

Jack was trying to tend to Sam, but she was slipping, and the few bandages and gauze pads in the first-aid kit weren't much use. "Someone get a hold of Thor!" Jack called, trying hard not to let his panic show in his voice. "Carter's not going to make it!" At that moment, however, a bright white light surrounded Sam, and she vanished. Jack stared gaping at where she'd been.

"I guess he heard you." Daniel said, glancing back at Jack, who was still looking slightly stunned.

"Yeah." Jack got to his feet. "Good thing too."

"O'Neill." Thor's voice sounded through the tiny ship. "We have Major Carter and will care for her more grievous wounds. Keep on your course and you will be picked up by the Asgard ship once you are in range."

Jack looked around. "Thanks, buddy.

* * *

"How's Carter?" Jack asked for what felt like the millionth time that night.

Janet sighed. "She's getting better, but I won't be able to look after her properly if you keep bothering me. And you really should go get some sleep as well."

"I can't." Jack said, looking through the window of the observation room to where Sam lay. It seemed like only yesterday she was in there with the bacteria slowly shutting off her brain. Now the cause of her suffering was much easier to understand, but Jack found himself just as worried as he had been, if not more. "Did you figure out what happened to her?"

"Not exactly," Janet replied, shaking her head. "I can guess some of the things. And she will recover completely in time. Thor was right, they must have taken care of the worse parts of the injuries. I can tell she did have a lot of broken bones that have been healed."

Jack winced. "Makes me feel even worse about the way I carried her out of there."

"You did what you had to to get her out," Janet said. "It's not just her physical injuries that worry me, though."

"What do you mean?"

"I've treated plenty of people who've gone through experiences so horrible it drives them insane."

"Carter's a tough girl," Jack said, though he didn't sound too sure of himself. "I'm sure she'll be fine."

"I don't care how tough she is," Janet said. "No one could go through what she's obviously been through and still be ok."

Jack sighed, then said good night and headed back to his quarters, but not after a long, final look down at Sam.

In the briefing room the next day Hammond and SG-1 were being updated on Sam's condition.

"It's not good," Janet said. "Some of the things they did to her were just…barbarically sickening."

"Like what?" Jack asked.

Janet gave him a look that plainly said 'Do you really want to know?', but she continued. "She was obviously tortured a great deal…some of the wounds on her body are unlike any I've seen before. As to what else was done, I can only guess. I can tell you one thing, these Riven aren't remotely human."

"They do have a great deal of very advanced technology," Daniel pointed out.

Hammond scowled. "I don't care how advanced their technology is. They do something like this to one of my officers without provocation, and I consider it an offense against the SGC and United States Air Force. The president agrees with me."

"You're not the only ones," Jack said. "From what the Asgard said the Riven pretty much blew the peace treaty they signed to pieces."

"Yes, so I've heard." Hammond nodded thoughtfully. "Well, for now I think I'm going to take SG-1 off active duty. You all could do with a bit of rest and recovery time. And depending on how long Major Carter needs to recover, I'll consider whether or not a substitute is necessary."

"You can't replace Carter." Jack said quietly, almost to himself.

"What was that?" Hammond looked at him.

Jack shook his head. "Nothing, General."

* * *

Normally when given some precious down time, Jack would go up to his cabin for some first rate relaxing. But he knew even if he felt up to driving up there, he wouldn't be able to relax knowing Carter was lying in one of the observation rooms, attached to an IV and heart monitor. So instead he pulled a chair up next to her bed and sat there for hours, sometimes flipping through the magazines he'd brought with him. Janet and the other medical attendants came in and out, changing the dressings on Sam's wounds and adjusting the amount of medication being fed intravenously to her. 

Cassandra even came in with Janet one morning and sat for a while, her and Jack exchanging a few words of worry for Sam, but nothing more. The hours dragged on, and Jack was called away to attend to business, but he always returned as quick as he could.

One evening he'd been sitting with his face in his hands, when he was startled by a noise. Looking up, he saw Sam had her eyes open and was watching him.

"Hey, Carter. How ya feeling?"

"Terrible, Sir." Sam replied, smiling faintly.

Jack reached over to gently pat Sam's hand, and was slightly surprised when she turned hers, curling her fingers around his. "Are you feeling _any_ better?" he asked.

Sam nodded. "I am, actually. Physically. I still have this nagging worry that this is all a dream and I'm just going to…" she stopped, closing her eyes tightly and shaking her head. "But I know it isn't."

"How?"

Sam looked up, meeting Jack's gaze. "I can tell."

"Good." Jack gave her fingers a gently squeeze, then reluctantly pulled his hand back as Janet came in.

"How's the patient doing?" Janet asked, looking down at Sam.

"A lot better," Sam told her. "Thanks."

"It's not just me you have to thank," Janet said, checking the readout from the machines. "Colonel O'Neill got you out of there in the first place, and the Asgard were able to deal with some of your injuries that I doubt even I would have been able to fix."

Over the next few days Sam began showing tremendous signs of recovery, much to Janet's delight. She was still kept in one of the observation rooms, however, until Janet was completely satisfied that she was going to be ok.

Sam was surprised by a visit from Thor, one day when the rest of SG-1 was in talking to her.

"I am glad to see you recovering so well, Major Carter." Thor said, regarding Sam placidly.

Sam nodded. "And I hear I have you to thank for me being here."

"Colonel O'Neill retrieved you from the Riven, we merely healed some of your major injuries," Thor said dismissively.

"Still, thank you."

Thor nodded. "I have come here to tell you that you need not worry about the Riven coming to earth, or any other of the Asgard protected planets. You will be safe on any of them. I also will warn you that if you ever see a Riven on earth, it will be a holographic representation, so do not worry."

"Well that's good." Jack said, folding his arms over his chest. "So you're sure this….Kharon guy won't come looking for Carter?"

"I did not say that." Thor said. " I merely said that Major Carter will be safe on the Asgard protected planets. We have them heavily defended as of now."

Jack nodded. "So is there anything else we should know?"

Thor blinked. "There is. A very dangerous situation has arisen since the Riven decided to break off their treaty with us. They are planning on taking over this galaxy in the name of the New Celestial Order. If they succeed, all life will be put into slavery far worse then that of the goa'uld."

Sam shuddered, and Jack involuntarily put a hand on her arm.

"Wait," he said. "You said _worse_ then the goa'uld?"

"Indeed." Thor nodded. "They wish to enslave all life, even the goa'uld. We Asgard have contacted some of the system lords in hope of allying against this common enemy-"

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Jack interrupted. "I'm not allying with any snake-heads, no matter who's attacking us!"

"They are of the same opinion about our side." Thor said. "They will not ally, but it will be their loss. A three sided war is not good for the smallest side."

"So when are these Riven planning on attacking?" Jack asked.

"We do not know." Thor said. "Not for a while, we hope."

"I shall try and contact more Jaffa." Teal'c put in. "A large army of Jaffa would make a formidable enemy, even to the Riven."

"In that you are correct," Thor agreed. "I must now meet with the Asgard high council."

"You'll keep us posted though, right?" Jack asked.

"Of course." With that, Thor vanished.

Daniel turned towards Sam. "Hey, Sam, you ok?"

"I'm fine, Daniel, just a little…" Sam shuddered.

"Yeah, I'm not too fond of having the galaxy run over by these Riven guys either." Jack said, rubbing his hands over his face. "Oh, God, if it isn't the goa'uld…it's some other big bad guy wanting a bit of power."

They were all silent for a long time. Sam finally let out a sigh.

"What are we going to do?"

"Sit tight," Jack said. "There's not a whole lot we can do, for the moment."

To Be Continued…


	6. Peace of Mind

Part VI: Peace of Mind

Jack was allowed a little time, at least, to rest when nothing big seemed to be happening. While Sam was recovering, the rest of SG-1 went on a couple unimportant missions, though they encountered nothing more interesting than some hostile natives. After that incident, however, General Hammond decided to give them a little more down time.

Sam recovered faster than anyone could have hoped, and was soon back in her lab working on projects. Janet, however, was worried about Sam's mental state. Indeed everyone noticed that the Major seemed quieter and was spending more time on her own. Which, as Jack said, was saying something.

"I don't think she's given me one incomprehensible lecture all week," Jack said to Janet during one of his weekly checkups. "Are you sure she's got a clean bill of health?"

"Physically Sam's fine," Janet told him. "But I am worried about her mental health. What I think she really needs is some time off."

"Easier said than done," Jack said. "Pulling Carter away from her work under normal circumstances is nearly impossible…"

Janet gave him a pointed look. "You _are_ her commanding officer."

"Oh no." Jack scowled as he realized what Janet was asking. "No no no. Don't even go there."

* * *

Sam sat hunched over an interesting machine picked up by SG-11 on their latest mission. Her face was illuminated by the glow from her laptop as she prodded and tested, moving wires and taking readings. She didn't even notice when Jack entered the dimly lit lab, until he spoke. 

"Carter?"

Sam didn't look up. "Sir, I'm right in the middle of something."

Jack walked over and closed her laptop, earning a reproachful glare from his 2IC. "Carter, you've been 'in the middle of something' ever since you got out of the infirmary. Why don't you take a day off and leave the base?"

"Sir, I…" Sam shook her head. "I don't want to leave the base."

"Well, I think you should. And Fraiser agrees with me." Jack tilted his head to one side. He caught a faint glint of something in Sam's eyes…fear? No, it couldn't be. "Carter…Are you sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine," Sam replied grumpily.

"Good, then you wouldn't have any objection to me all but ordering you off the base for a while.

"Sir-!"

Jack leaned heavily on the table. "I was planning on going up to the cabin…why don't you come along?"

"Sir," Sam looked up at him. "I don't think that would be a good idea."

"I've got it," Jack said, gesturing emphatically with his hands. "Me, you, Daniel and Teal'c can get together, order some pizza, drink some beer, watch some Star Wars…"

Sam snorted and shook her head.

"Oh, I give up." Jack turned slowly around, looking at the machines that lined the walls of Sam's lab. "God knows why you'd want to sit in _here_ for the rest of your life, but if that's what floats your boat then fine. Fraiser was just worried about you and for that matter so am I."

Sam was silent for a moment then she said quietly, "I feel safe here."

Turning back around to look at her, Jack frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know." Sam said, shaking her head.

"Carter, what are you afraid of?" Jack asked, leaning on the table once more. "That those guys are going to come after you?"

"I don't know what I'm afraid of, Sir," Sam admitted. "I just am. I'll wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and I have no idea why."

"Which is exactly why you need to get out of this dark, dank, gloomy place." Jack said. "Carter, you know we will do everything to keep you safe and you know that Thor said the Riven can't get you here. Now, come do something with us or I'll have Teal'c drag you out of here if I have to."

A faint smile flashed across Sam's face, but then was gone. She nodded. "Alright, Sir."

"Good girl." Jack reached over and patted Sam's shoulder before leaving.

* * *

"Is it just me or is there this little gloomy cloud hovering over that corner of the room?" Jack commented, gesturing to where Sam sat sulkily in one of the armchairs in his living room. 

"Major Carter, are you not well?" Teal'c asked, regarding Sam with a concerned expression.

Sam looked up. "I'm fine. Really."

"Great." Jack got to his feet. "Now that that's cleared up, lets put the movie in."

After the movie was over they all sat around talking, rather, Daniel, Teal'c and Jack talked. Sam was still being quiet. Jack finally got to his feet and gestured for Sam to follow him out onto the back patio.

"Carter, what is your problem?"

"Sir?" Sam raised an eyebrow.

"You have been acting _so_ weird," Jack said, accentuating each word with a sharp movement of his hand, "these past few days. I mean, I know something horrible happened to you but until you tell us _what_…I don't know how the hell I'm supposed to help you."

"Sir you don't need to do anything for me."

"Carter," Jack sighed heavily. "I want to help you. Talk to me, please."

Sam shook her head, pursing her lips and folding her arms over her chest. "I…I can't…Sir…"

"Carter." Jack stepped forward and put his hands on Sam's arms.

Sam took another deep breath and closed her eyes as tears began forming in them. "It's just…I would have rather been captured by a goa'uld system lord then the Riven."

"Why?"

"Because at least the goa'uld _want_ something!" Sam said. "They want information…answers… and if you tell them at least they'll stop whatever they're doing to you."

Jack frowned, not really sure where Sam was going with this.

"The Riven don't want anything." Sam continued. She looked straight into Jacks eyes. "They torture just because they like pain…they want to hear you scream and cry and beg for mercy. They did more than just hurt me…they made me relive moments in my life that I always hoped to forget, they use my worst nightmares against me…" she shook her head, closing her eyes.

"I'm sorry." Jack pulled Sam into a tight embrace. "Really. I wish to God that had never happened to you."

Just then the doors to the patio slid open and Daniel stuck his head out. "Oh, sorry," he said, noticing his two friends in an embrace. "I wasn't interrupting was I?"

Sam stepped away from Jack. "No, Daniel, it's fine."

"What's up?" Jack asked.

"Uhmm…" Daniel jerked his thumb back towards the inside of the house. "Hammond just called. He needs us all back at the base."

* * *

"So much for getting some relaxation time in," Jack grumbled as he drove himself and Sam back to the SGC. "Though I suppose if we're preparing for some inter galactic war I couldn't have expected much." 

"I wonder what Hammond needs," Sam said, fishing in her pocket for her ID card as they pulled up at the gates of the Cheyenne Mountain Complex.

"No idea."

A few minutes later Jack and Sam were walking up to the briefing room. When they stepped in, however, Sam's face blanched and she clapped both hands over her mouth. Jack gave her a strange look then followed her gaze.

Standing near the window looking down on the gate room was a black clad Riven.

"Major Carter," Hammond said from his spot at the head of the table. "This is merely a hologram, there is no need to fear."

Sam forced herself to let her hands fall to her side. "Sir."

"General," Jack said, putting a hand on Sam's back. "Can I suggest that we let Major Carter sit this one out?"

"I'm afraid not." Hammond said, gesturing for Jack and Sam to take seats next to Daniel and Teal'c on the opposite side of the table from the Riven.

"Yes," The Riven said. "I'm afraid Samantha Carter is an essential part of these proceedings."

"What do you want?" Jack snarled. "Don't you think you've done enough damage?"

"I have merely come to negotiate for what is rightfully mine," the Riven said. He inclined his head slightly, keeping his yellowish eyes on Jack. "I am Kharon, supreme leader of the Riven."

"There's nothing on this planet that's yours." Jack replied, managing to keep his cool. "In fact, I don't think there's anything in this whole damn galaxy that's yours."

"Surely the life of one female cannot be worth that much to you."

"As a matter of fact," Jack replied. "Major Carter's life is worth a hell of a lot to me."

Kharon regarded them all for a long moment, saying nothing.

"And why do you want her so bad anyway?" Jack demanded. "All you were doing is kicking the crap out of her."

"Why do you have such an interest in her?" Kharon countered. "All you do is order her around."

Jack scowled. "You can't have her. She's a human being, not something you can just steal or trade."

"I must agree with Colonel O'Neill," Hammond put in. "This is non negotiable. And there's nothing you can do about it, the Asgard are watching this planet, so you have no leverage over us."

"Oh, no?" Kharon's eyes seemed to grow wider. "I'm warning you now, General Hammond of the tau'ri. Whatever you have seen in your small exploration of the universe is nothing…nothing to the power of the Riven. And Samantha Carter is the least of my concerns…she's merely a…spoil, of war." With that he straightened up, and faded away.

"I think we can safely take that as a threat." Hammond said, folding his hands.

"Hey, Carter," Jack said, putting a comforting hand on Sam's shoulder. She was still very pale and clutched the edge of the table tightly. "Calm down, I think that guy was all bark and no bite." Sam glared at her CO, and he corrected himself. "I just meant that he can't do anything, right? I mean Thor said the Riven can't attack Asgard protected planets."

"Well, let's hope he's right." Hammond said, nodding. "Speaking of Thor, last time he was here he left a device to get in contact with his people. I think we should tell them about Kharon coming here."

"Good idea, General," Jack agreed. "Daniel, why don't you take care of that?"

"Um, me?" Daniel raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Jack got to his feet. "You."

* * *

With SG-1 ordered to remain on base and await more news from the Asgard, Jack found it difficult to follow Janet's demand that he keep Sam distracted from the ever-present worry of the Riven in her mind. 

One night Jack was awoken from a none-too-peaceful sleep in his quarters by the definite feeling that something was wrong. Slipping out of bed, he opened the door and stepped out into the hall. Then he heard the screaming.

"Sir!" An airman came running around the corner. "Dr. Fraiser wanted me to get you…It's Major Carter, something's wrong."

Jack nodded, then hurried after the airman to Sam's quarters, where he found her curled up in the fetal position on the floor, positively howling and holding her head in her hands. Janet was crouched next to her, and looked up as Jack entered.

"Sir, I'm going to have to administer sedatives," Janet said. "If I try to calm her down she just tries to fight me."

"Yeah," Jack nodded, kneeling down next to her. "You go get them, I'll stay with Carter." Janet hurried out of the room. Jack reached out to put a hand on Sam's shoulder. She had stopped screaming, but was shaking violently and whimpering. "Hey, Carter." Jack said softly.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Sam screamed. "Get away! No! Go away!" She began crying heavily. Jack tried to put his hand on her shoulder again, but Sam sat up, keeping one arm over her face and punched him with the other.

"Ow!" Jack swore softly. "Goddamn, Carter!"

"Leave me alone!" Sam cried.

Janet returned with a syringe and a couple nurses. Sam saw the syringe and started screaming louder. Jack and the two nurses had to hold her down while Janet administered the sedative, and Jack was sure he'd been bruised in more than one place. Soon, however, Sam was slumped unconscious on the floor. The two nurses wheeled a gurney into the room and lifted Sam onto it with help from Jack.

"What the hell happened?" Jack asked angrily, walking with Janet down to the infirmary.

Janet shook her head sadly. "I really don't know."


	7. Interlude: Dream Sequence

Interlude: Dream Sequence

Light. Dark. Light again. Pain…fear…the Riven were coming to take her again, to drag her from the room, to bring the hurt, the shame…Sam tried to fight them off but they were so much stronger than her, especially because she was so injured.

Back in the cell she was able to look herself over, determine that she had a few broken bones at least. She didn't understand the Riven, their obsession with pain and fear. But to see the look on Kharon's face when he ran his sharp claw-like nails across her skin causing lines of blood to appear…Sam could feel her stomach churning. And that wasn't even the worst of it.

Someone touched her. She screamed and fought them off. Stay alive…stay alive…your friends _will_ come and rescue you.

The Riven were coming back again, two of them, one looming over her with a needle. She screamed and fought, but more held her back.

When Sam next opened her eyes, she was laying in the infirmary of the SGC. Janet was leaning over her.

"Sam?"

"Janet…" Sam's throat hurt. Probably from all the screaming and the fact the Riven gave her barely enough water to stay alive. "Am I safe?"

"You're safe." Janet assured her. But Sam knew it wasn't real, and all too soon she was looking not at Janet's face but the grotesque visage of one of her captors.

The wall was hard against Sam's back as Kharon shoved her against it. She could smell the acrid scent of his skin as he pressed himself against her, studying her face with his yellow eyes.

"You're such a perfect creature." He whispered. "So beautiful. Why is it that those too young to appreciate their beauty are always graced with it? You know why I am feared, Samantha Carter? I am feared because I am hideous, because I am frightening. Many hate me."

"They hate you because you're a sick bastard!" Sam growled out. She could feel blood trickling out of the corner of her mouth.

"No." As Kharon spoke he ran one fingernail down Sam's cheek, tracing a perfect line of blood. "Oh, I hate you for your beauty…and yet it just makes me desire you more." He tilted his head, licking the blood away with his black, snake-like tongue.

Sam's mind faded, not letting her see what happened next. She awoke later in her cell, screaming and shuddering violently as the bright lights shone above her.

"C'mon, Carter, you have to be strong." Jack said. Sam looked up and knew he wasn't real, but she reached for him with one hand, and was surprised at how real his skin felt. He looked down at her sadly. "I'm sorry, Sam, I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, Jack."

Sam rolled onto her side, looking down at the white floor of her cell she vomited a liquid red onto the clean tiles. Pain lanced through her and she wondered when this would end. When someone would rescue her or when her body would finally give in.


	8. Reconnaissance

Part VII: Reconnaissance 

"No!" Sam shouted, sitting bolt upright. Looking around, she found herself in the infirmary…again.

Janet was at Sam's side in a second, putting her hand to the major's sweaty forehead. "Hey, Sam, how are you feeling?"

"I…" how many times had Sam awoken in the infirmary only to find it a dream? But she was sure this was real. Positive. "What happened?"

"Why don't _you_ tell me?" Janet asked, checking the fluid in Sam's IV.

"I don't know…" Sam replied. She rubbed her hands over her face. "It was all like one long nightmare…"

"Yeah," Janet sat back down on the edge of Sam's bed. "I could tell. We've had to have you on sedatives since last night so you wouldn't hurt anyone, or yourself." She tilted her head to one side. "Do you want to talk about what you saw?"

Sam closed her eyes. She took a few deep breaths. "I just relived everything…well, almost everything, that I went through."

"I still don't know what that is, exactly," Janet said quietly.

Sam shook her head. "I don't think I'm ready to talk about it."

"Sam, I know this is hard for you," Janet was speaking slowly. "But it isn't good to keep all this bottled up inside."

Sam sighed. "Janet when I need a psychologist I'll ask for one."

Janet laughed. "I'm sure you will." She patted Sam's shoulder and got to her feet. "Anyway, I'm going to go find Colonel O'Neill and tell him you're awake, he's been bugging me about you."

"Really?"

A secretive little smile passed over Janet's face. She knew very well what was going on here. "Yeah."

* * *

"So you figured out what's wrong with Carter?" Jack asked a couple hours later as he followed Janet into her office.

"I'm thinking it's a reaction to her seeing the Riven again," Janet explained. "It triggered memories that I'm sure Sam was trying to subdue. I almost feel guilty…by giving her the sedatives I only helped to prolong the nightmare."

"Don't blame yourself, Doc," Jack said dismissively. "It's not your fault Carter's going through all that. If anything it's mine…but mostly I blame those big, ugly aliens."

Janet nodded in agreement. Jack went back into the infirmary, and seeing that Sam was asleep again, continued out then up to the briefing room and General Hammond's office. Hammond was on the phone, and motioned for Jack to sit down.

"I understand, Sir," Hammond said into the phone. "I'll keep you updated. All right." He hung up and folded his hands as he regarded Jack. "What can I do for you, Colonel?"

"I just wanted to tell you that Major Carter's doing better." Jack said.

Hammond nodded. "That's good. But I'm afraid I've got bad news. We recently received intelligence from the Tok'ra that several Riven ships have been sighted massing around a planet on the fringes of our galaxy. They've made no threat so far but we can assume they're preparing for attack."

"That's not good." Jack said bluntly.

"No, it's not." Hammond sighed heavily. "But I'm afraid until we hear from the Asgard, there's nothing much we can do about it."

"Wonderful." Jack said. "Just sitting and…waiting…and…yeah"

* * *

Sam sat at the table in her lab, her laptop before her, but shut off. She was staring off into space, and hardly surprised when she looked up to see Jack standing in the doorway. 

"Hey." Jack said, walking over. "Daniel and Teal'c are off base for the night and seeing as Fraiser wanted to keep you well within her sight, I thought I'd stay and keep you company. At least until I get bored."

"Thank you, Sir," Sam said, giving her CO an odd look. "But you don't have to."

"Nah, it's no trouble," Jack replied, sitting down and spinning slightly in the wheeled chair. "Besides, I have nothing better to do."

Sam turned on her laptop. "If this is just another attempt to get some answers out of me as to what happened…"

"No." Jack's tone was sincere. "No questions, I promise. Whatcha working on?"

"Oh…" Sam frowned slightly, logging into her computer. "I'm just running over a proposal for naquadah bullets."

Jack raised his eyebrows. "Ouch."

"Yeah." Sam nodded. "Our problem is creating a gun powerful enough to launch them, and yet not cause them to explode _inside_ the guns. I'm thinking we need to find a way to create an exothermic reaction inside the shell upon impact that causes the naquadah to react."

"Right…" Jack nodded, but it was obvious all of Sam's words had gone in one ear and out the other. "That sounds…logical…"

They both looked up as two airmen entered the room.

"Major Carter." One of them said, regarding Sam with a stony expression.

"Yes?" Sam stood up slowly, closing her laptop as she did so.

"There are some representatives from the pentagon in the briefing room, they wish to speak with you."

Jack got to his feet as well. "They want to 'talk' to Carter? Why wasn't I told about this?"

The airman seemed to stand up straighter. "They just arrived, sir." He turned back to Sam. "Please come with us, Major."

Jack nodded to Sam. "I'll come too."

But up at the briefing room, Jack was told very sternly that he wasn't needed.

"She's _my_ officer," Jack argued. "I think I should at least be told what you want with her."

"Jack," Hammond said. "They need to talk to her, its concerning the impending Riven attack. I'm sorry, these orders are coming directly from the president."

For a second Jack met Sam's eyes over Hammond's shoulder. Sam gave him a determined look. Jack nodded. "Fine. I'm going." He turned and walked back down the stairs to the control room.

Sam, meanwhile, sat down in one of the chairs at the briefing room. Two men sat across from her; one in a prim, starched military uniform, the other in a dark brown business suit. Hammond hovered behind Sam, watching the two newcomers warily.

"Major," Hammond said. "This is General Kerry and Joseph Laskowski from the pentagon. They need to talk to you about the Riven."

Sam frowned. "If you want information about their technology, you should talk to the other members of SG-1, they were briefed by the Asgard on Riven technology."

"We will in time," Laskowski said stiffly. "Right now we'd like to know about the Riven themselves, and your experience with them." He reached over and pressed a button on a tape recorder next to him.

"Uhm…" Sam felt the color draining from her face. "I haven't really talked to anyone about that…And I don't really see how knowing what happened to me will help fight the Riven at all."

"Knowledge of your enemy's ways is one step in defeating them, Major." General Kerry put in. "Anything you can tell us will be useful in understanding their ways."

Sam looked down and shook her head. "I'm sorry. I can't…talk about it."

Kerry sounded annoyed. "We're not asking you, Major."

"With all due respect," Hammond said. "Major Carter is still recovering from her ordeal with the Riven. I don't think this is a good time to be interrogating her about it."

"I agree!" came Janet's voice from the stairs. All heads turned.

"Dr. Fraiser," Hammond said patiently. "You do not have permission to be in here."

"I don't care!" Janet bristled. "I won't let you grill Sam on something that still is causing her so much trouble."

"Ma'am." Laskowski said. "This is a matter of not only national, but indeed worldwide and galactic security. There's nothing we can do." He looked over at Kerry. "Perhaps we should move to a more secure location? General Hammond, I trust you have isolation rooms."

* * *

Jack and Janet were both waiting outside the room when Sam finally exited, her eyes red and wet. She hurried down the hall.

"Sam?!" Janet called, rushing after. "Sam!!"

Jack turned angrily as Laskowski exited the room. "Well I hope you're happy."

"We've got enough information to have a good idea of what these Riven are like," Laskowski replied coolly.

"You…politicians." Jack spat out as Kerry joined Laskowski. "You've got so much power and yet you've never seen _anything_ like what we see off-world. You could never begin to understand what Carter went through trapped on the Riven ship, thousands of light years – not miles, _light years_ – away from Earth, not knowing if anyone could find her."

"You seem to have an oddly strong concern for Major Carter's well being, Colonel." Kerry said.

Jack rolled his eyes. "She's my second in command, and has been so for nearly five or six years now. Of course I'm concerned about her."

"Really? That's all?" Kerry raised one eyebrow.

"Yes." Jack nodded sharply. "That's all. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to do a little damage control." He turned and walked down the hall in the direction that Sam and Janet had gone.

Sam and Janet were in Sam's lab, Janet standing and listening patiently while Sam half ranted and half cried.

"And then I woke up and I saw Colonel O'Neill but I thought it was just a dream." Sam appeared to have finished her little monologue. Janet sat there, eyes wide, listening intently.

"Hey, what'd I miss?" Jack asked quietly, entering the room.

Sam gestured vaguely with her hands. "What I told them isn't going to help at all if the Riven attack. There's nothing we can do that will get the Riven to stop. They'll be doing this because they enjoy it."

"Did you tell those two SOB's from the pentagon that?" Jack asked, walking over to stand next to Janet.

Sam nodded. "Yeah. Not that that made them very happy."

"Colonel O'Neill to the gate room, Repeat: Colonel O'Neill to the gate room."

Jack groaned. He turned and hurried to the elevator. Sam followed and Janet returned to the infirmary.

Jack had just entered the gate room when he motioned for Sam not to follow. "Carter I don't think you're going to want to see this."

Thor and another Asgard stood in the gate room, and it was obvious why they'd chosen to appear here. Between them was what looked like a large stasis pod, surrounded by bars of some dark metal. Inside was the unmistakable form of a Riven.

"Sir?" Sam said questioningly from the doorway.

"Carter," Jack was still eyeing the strange pod. "Just go…analyze some naquadah generators or something. Leave this one to me."

Sam nodded and headed back to her lab.

"So what is this?" Jack asked Thor.

"We captured this Riven scout aboard one of our ships," Thor said. "We've discovered that they are susceptible to the element naquadah."

"What do you mean?" Jack asked.

"They cannot pass through it," Thor explained. "And indeed it appears to have a very negative effect on their bodies. If you could find a way to inject it right into them…"

Jack's eyes suddenly widened. "I've got it! Wait right here, I'll be back in a minute…" He turned and rushed out of the gate room.

Sam hadn't even made it back to her lab when Jack came running up.

"Carter!"

"Sir?" She turned around, raising an eyebrow,

"You said you heard a proposal for naquadah bullets?"

Sam rolled her eyes. "I turned it down. Their actual application is pretty impractical. The cost and labor alone to create each bullet far outweighs the benefits."

"What do they do, exactly?" Jack for once seemed to be hanging onto all of Sam's words.

"Well, when fired the heat causes a small piece of material in the bullet to weaken, so on impact the acetic acid and potassium hydroxide are combined causing an extreme exothermic reaction that in turn – "

"Ah!" Jack cut Sam off with a motion of his hand. "What does it _do_?"

Sam sighed, laughing quietly. "On impact the naquadah inside the core explodes."

"And it sends naquadah into the body of whatever it hits?"

"I think that's a safe assumption." Sam said, nodding. "But like I said, the practical uses of a bullet like that…We could easily use another reactive metal."

"No. This idea is perfect." Jack said. "Call whoever thought it up and tell them that you're going to run it by General Hammond."

"But, Sir…"

"Carter, the Riven are susceptible to naquadah. We've got the plans for a weapon that could possibly save us from them." Jack grinned. "Call the guy who thought it up."

* * *

"Would you like to keep the Riven prisoner for further interrogation?" Thor asked. He stood in the gate room, facing Hammond and SG-1. 

"Actually, sir," Sam said, turning to Hammond. "I don't think that would be a good idea. If the Riven know we've got one of their's captured, they might try to launch a rescue."

"On the contrary, Major Carter," Thor said. "The Riven do not care about those of them that have been captured, unless that one is a leader. They are very unlike yourselves, as I'm sure you know." Sam nodded mutely.

"I can understand Major Carter's hesitance to have a Riven on base," Hammond said. "And I also know that we probably don't have the facilities to hold one. If naquadah is indeed the only thing that holds it." He thought a moment. "Perhaps we could send someone with you to try and get some answers."

"I think that can be arranged." Thor said. "I'll have to speak with the high council first."

"Of course."

* * *

A few days later SG-1 was gathered in the briefing room.

"Do you think you're all up to a simple recon mission?" Hammond asked. "P5X-782. MALP telemetry shows it to be safe, though we've seen no life forms."

"Just as long as they're not all infected with a mind controlling bacteria." Jack said.

Hammond nodded. "The Asgard have confirmed that this planet is too far into the galaxy to be inhabited by the Paren. They wouldn't have reached it yet."

"We'll bring our bug spray just incase."

In the gate room, Jack asked Sam if she was sure she'd be ok with this.

"I mean, if you need to sit this one out we'll be fine." He said.

Sam smiled reassuringly. "Really, sir, I'll be fine."

P5X-782 looked just like many of the other planets they'd encountered in their travels, trees, plains, and more trees. A gentle breeze played across Jack's face as he scanned the area around him. Faint birdcalls issued from the treetops, and the grass rippled in waves like that of water.

"Ahhhh," Jack said. "Now this is what I'm talking about, a nice uninhabited planet."

"Let's keep walking before we make that assumption," Daniel said.

They walked through the forest and came out on another plain, this one dotted with the familiar sight of ancient ruins. Daniel immediately hurried off to examine them, and Teal'c began patrolling in search of any life forms. Jack plopped down at the base of a large piece of stone that jutted out of the ground and gestured for Sam to do the same.

"See?" he said happily. "Nice. Uninhabited. Lovely weather."

Sam smiled faintly and sat down, pulling out one of the many instruments she had in her pack. After a minute she declared everything normal.

"You didn't have to tell me that." Jack muttered. He'd slid down so he was lying on the ground, hat over his face, arms folded behind his head.

Sam tilted her head to one side. "Sir, don't you think we should be looking for…something?"

"Nah, Daniel's got that covered." Jack peeked out from under his hat and pointed to Daniel, who was excitedly examining something on the side of what had once been a building. "See? And I'm sure if anything that's moving and interesting comes along, Teal'c will give us a shout."

"This place can't have been inhabited for years…" Sam said. "I mean look how overgrown it is. And the DHD was covered in vines like no one had used it in a long time."

"You're probably right, Carter." Jack sat up and regarded Sam thoughtfully. "How're you holding up? I know these past few weeks haven't been easy on you."

Sam nodded. "A lot better, actually. The farther into the past _it_ gets, the more it fades away. I'm not perfect, but I am a lot better."

"Good." Jack gave her one of his little smiles.

'One of his _adorable_ little smiles.' Sam thought, staring bemusedly back at her CO. Jack's smile turned to a questioning look, and Sam felt her face go red as she realized she'd been staring. "Sorry, I was just…thinking."

"About what?"

Sam shook her head. "Nothing." Jack nodded, not entirely believing her.

"Hey guys!" Daniel cried, rushing over to Jack and Sam. "Look!" He shoved his open notebook under Jack's nose.

"Great." Jack looked up. "What is it?"

"I think," Daniel paused to push his glasses up his nose. "That the original inhabitants of this planet were similar to the ancient Romans. The language is most definitely classical Latin."

"You said original inhabitants," Sam said. "You don't think they're still here?"

"I don't know," Daniel shrugged. "_This_ place is obviously abandoned, but that doesn't mean that there aren't people elsewhere on the planet."

"I believe you are correct, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c appeared out of the woods and walked over to where his three companions sat. "I believe that I have discovered some signs of inhabitants."

Jack groaned and got to his feet. "Vacations over, kids." He stretched. "Lead the way, T."

They all followed Teal'c into the woods and soon came upon a trail that obviously had been recently used. Jack and Daniel took point then, until suddenly they came to two large white walls. Walking through the gap between them, SG-1 found themselves in a bustling city. The two walls, which turned out to be buildings, had obviously reflected the noise away from the forest.

Jack stared at the hundreds of men, women and children milling the sidewalks, all wearing togas, robes and tunics. "Uninhabited my ass," he muttered.

A man with short brown hair and wearing a long white toga with a purple border walked over.

"Salvete, advenae," he said, his tone curious.

"Uhmm…salve." Daniel replied, stepping forward. "Sumus viatores qui pervenimus cum bona pace."

"Ah!" The man looked delighted. "Salvere ibeo!"

"Gratias tibi," Daniel said, smiling. "Nomen meum Daniel Jackson, et haec Jack O'Neill, Samantha Carter, et Teal'c. Non dicunt latinae."

"Ego Marcus." The man replied.

"What are you saying to him?" Jack asked, nudging Daniel.

"I just told him that we're peaceful travelers, and I told him our names."

The man's eyes lit up. "You speak the language of traders." He said in a slightly accented English.

"Oh, that's what you call it?" Daniel said. "Yeah, this is our native language. And I suppose you could say we're traders…of a sort."

"Everyone here speaks the ancient tongue…Latin, as you called it," Marcus explained. "But a great deal of us also speak the trading language. It's the only universal one on this planet. Where have you come from?"

"We came through the stargate." When Daniel only got a blank stare, he continued to explain, "the big round circle? A little ways back there."

Marcus looked surprised. "Anulus Deos?"

"Ring of the Gods, yes." Daniel nodded.

"Sed…!" In his shock, Marcus had lapsed back into Latin. Clutching at his toga he shook his head and stammered, "But…no one has come through there in many many years…not since Pluto came in his flaming chariot. And his decree forbids us from going near anulus deos!"

"Pluto is the god of the underworld," Daniel explained to the rest of the group. "More commonly known as Hades from Greek mythology."

"So you're telling me that there's a Goa'uld here?" Jack asked.

Marcus, meanwhile, seemed to have regained his composure. "Please, I would be very honored if you would dine with me and my family. Will you come?"

Daniel looked at Jack with a wide-eyed expression. "Can we?" he sounded very much like a little child begging to go to the zoo. "This could be my only chance to observe first class the ancient roman culture!"

Jack sighed, looking at his watch. "I suppose, but keep alert, the last thing I need is some snake head popping up on us."

On the way back to Marcus' home, they learned that he was a senator in the Forum, and very well respected. He had a wife, Lavinia, and a son, Sextus. His home was quite impressive, very Roman, reminding Jack of the ruins he'd seen on his trip to Rome. Both Lavinia and Sextus spoke English, though the many slaves and servants didn't.

"You are in your planet's military?" Sextus asked Sam curiously as they waited for dinner to be prepared. "They don't allow women into our military."

"They only just started letting us fight in the past couple decades," Sam explained.

"And I'll tell you something," Jack said. "I'd hate to come against Sam in a battle."

Sextus grinned. "I'm going to be a soldier when I'm older. Maybe I'll even lead my own legions." The bell for dinner rang and they all went into the long dinning room.

The dinning hall had a long table in it, which was laid with a wide assortment of foods. Cushions, rather than chairs, lined either side and SG-1 settled down nest to Marcus, Lavinia, and Sextus.

"So tell us about this Pluto," Daniel asked. "What I know about the ancient Romans of our world is that they worshipped many gods, and yet from what I've learned here it seems you guys only worship Pluto."

"We used to have more," Lavinia explained. "Mars himself used to often come to accept tribute personally. And then when Marcus was very young, before I was born, it is said a flaming object fell from the sky, and in it was a strange being. He was very powerful, and so we knew he must be a god, though he was different from the others." She looked to her husband, who continued.

"After being here for a while," Marcus said. "The being told us he was Pluto, seeking a new world to be his home. The next time Mars came they had a great fight, destroying Mars' temple near the anulus deos. Pluto said that we were his subjects now, and that we would no longer have to pay tribute to the other gods. In fact, he told us that they weren't really gods. They were false gods. Since then the anulus has gone unused."

"Do you see Pluto?" Daniel asked.

Marcus shook his head. "No, he has not shown his face for many years. He resides in an underground temple. I did see him once, though, on one of our festival days when I was a young boy."

"What did he look like?"

"Oh," a faint smile crossed Marcus' face. "God of the underworld indeed…Pluto is a powerful god, but terrifying to behold. He is like nothing else I have ever seen. Great yellow eyes, long sharp teeth…black robes. Terrifying to behold. He reminded me of a horse skull that I saw once, the way his face was elongated. But there was something…deeper that I can't describe."

Sam suddenly choked on the food she'd just swallowed.

"Easy there, Carter," Jack said, patting her on the back.

Sam looked up, her eyes wide. "Sir!" she said sharply.

"Yeah, I know," Jack nodded then turned to face Marcus. "Marcus, I hate to tell you this, but Pluto isn't a god either. He's an alien, called a Riven."

"Pluto has been our god for almost as long as I've been alive!" Marcus said, looking alarmed. "He has protected us from our false gods! The only tribute he's ever demanded is that we provide him with food…and a yearly sacrifice."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "Sacrifice?"

"One slave, or prisoner appeases him."

Daniel pushed his glasses up his nose. "And what does he do with them, exactly?"

Marcus seemed to quell for a moment. "It is not for us to say. But…I would not wish to receive the wrath of Pluto. He controls so much power…how do you say he is not a god?"

"Do you think it would be possible for us to see him?" Daniel asked cautiously.

"Daniel!" Sam hissed. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Sam, if this guy's been on this planet for the last few years, then obviously he's been cut off from the rest of the Riven. Maybe we can get some information from him about Riven technology."

"This is not something for me to decide," Marcus said nervously. "It is up to the forum, as well as the priests. You are welcome to stay here until they decide."

"Thanks." Jack said, looking around at his teammates, who all seemed nervous. "That'd be…great…"

To Be Continued….


	9. Getting the Go Ahead

Part VIII: Getting the Go Ahead

Jack could definitely see how the ancient Romans had influenced modern politics. Especially when it came to making decisions. However, the forum finally decided that SG-1, being from off-world, should be allowed an audience with Pluto.

"Half of me was hoping they'd say no," Sam admitted to Daniel as they followed a group of priests to what appeared a small stone building on the outskirts of town.

"You'll be ok, though, right?" Daniel asked, giving his friend a concerned look. Sam nodded, smiling reassuringly.

The door of the small building was opened to reveal a stone stairway leading down into darkness. A single torch burned in a bracket just inside the door, and the lead priest took this as they began their decent.

A heavy smell of decay hung in the air, which was moist and thick. Through the gloom Jack could see that the walls were made of stone, and that many of the squares had a thin layer of green mildew on them.

Finally they came to the bottom of the stairs and another door. In the middle of the door was a round, black something that looked suspiciously like some sort of lens. The priests lined up before it and bowed.

"Dominus Pluto!" One said, straightening up. "Viatores veniunt. Volunt te videre."

There was a click, and the door swung open. The chamber beyond had low ceiling, was dimly lit, and had the same sort of damp smell as a mausoleum that had been closed for too long. The group was led between two rows of burning braziers, until finally they came to the end where a single Riven sat on a stone chair. He regarded them with yellow eyes that were slightly clouded, as if by age.

"Oh, Dominus Pluto…" one of the priests began, but Pluto waved them aside with one thin, claw like hand.

"Leave." He said in English, his voice dry and brittle like old paper. The priests seemed confused, but they bowed and walked back out, leaving SG-1 alone with the "god". Pluto regarded them thoughtfully. "You are not of this planet."

"No." Jack said, assuming the role of spokesperson before Daniel could. "We're from a planet called Earth. We came through the stargate."

Pluto nodded. "And you are not Goa'uld? Though one of you is Jaffa."

"We're called the Tau'ri." Daniel said, stepping up alongside of Jack. "And Teal'c joined us to defeat the Goa'uld."

"That was daring of you." Pluto commented.

"Yeah, anyway," Jack sounded impatient. "We know that you're not a god. You're up to the same tricks as the Goa'uld."

"Perhaps so," Pluto said. "But my cause for being here is just, I am fleeing the other Riven who long ago shunned me."

"Why?" Daniel asked.

Pluto narrowed his eyes slightly. "That is not of your concern."

"Anyway," Daniel continued. "In case you haven't heard they're planning an attack on this galaxy. They've already started massing on a planet near the edge."

If a Riven could show a brief flash of worry, Pluto just did. "If this is true then they _will_ destroy me once they reach this planet."

"Well, maybe we could reach an agreement then," Jack suggested. "You help us drive the Riven out, and we could make sure they don't find you."

Pluto let out a loud, abrasive laugh. "_You_ defend me from my brethren? Hah! You couldn't even defend _her_ from them, what makes you think you could keep me, a fugitive, safe?"

Sam's eyes went wide. "How did you know that?"

"Simply by the way you're cowering behind him," he nodded towards Jack. "And avoiding looking at me. You fear Riven, and I can guess why."

Jack scowled, unconsciously taking a step towards Sam. "So can you help us?"

Pluto ran his black tongue over his long razor sharp teeth, which were now a dull shade of yellow. He was obviously very old, but still gave off the feeling that he was ready to pounce and tear your throat out.

"I am old." He said, validating Jack's last thoughts. "There is not much I can do. I plan to sit here and wait until Kharon comes with his fleet to destroy me. I will offer you a word of advice. You have Kharon's weakness."

"Do you mean naquadah?" Jack asked. "Because we already know you guys hate that stuff."

"I meant a mental weakness."

"Oh really?"

Pluto got to his feet with some difficulty and shuffled over to Sam. Out of the corner of his eye Jack could see her stiffen, tense, but still hold her chin up defiantly. Pluto reached out one hand to touch Sam's cheek, and only then did she flinch away.

"Hey!" Jack said sharply, forcing himself between Sam and the Riven.

Pluto's eyes sparkled slightly. "As I've said. You have Kharon's weakness." He stepped back as Jack bristled. "Also, we are weak without our technology."

"Yeah, those long teeth look really weak." Jack said.

"A trained fighter from your world, facing an unarmed Kharon, would be able to win."

"Wait wait," Jack waved his hand. "Let's back up a second. You said Carter is Kharon's weakness?"

"Indeed." Pluto nodded.

"As in, he really likes her?"

Another nod.

"So why the hell was he doing all that stuff to her?!"

Pluto gave Jack an odd look, obviously some Riven expression that didn't quite translate directly into any human one. "You could not understand…Our behaviors are obviously very different from yours. Kharon has never encountered creatures like you before, it is possible he didn't realize that what he was doing was damaging her. There is nothing quite like you in our home galaxy. The other Riven do not understand how you work. I can assure you that Kharon would never purposefully try to kill Carter."

"Well that makes me feel a lot better…" Sam muttered sarcastically.

"But wait," Jack began. "You mean…"

Pluto waved his hand. "I am old and tired…leave me be. I've told you enough."

Jack scowled. "Now wait a minute…"

"I said leave!" Pluto snapped, turning on Jack with all his teeth bared.

"Ok, Ok!" Jack took a step backwards, then turned and left with the rest of SG-1.

* * *

"General, have we got news for you!" Jack said as they stepped through back into the gateroom. "We encountered a Riven."

Hammond looked surprised. "They've made it this far into the galaxy?"

"Nope," Jack shook his head. "This guy was running from the rest of them. We had a very interesting heart to heart."

"Very well," Hammond nodded. "Briefing in one hour. Get yourselves down to the infirmary so Dr. Fraiser can look you over."

Up in the briefing room Jack told Hammond the few things they'd learned from Pluto.

"So let me get this straight," Hammond said. "Pretty much what you learned is the Riven's strength comes from their technology, and Kharon's weakness is Major Carter?"

"Yep." Jack nodded. "Not that that really helps us at all. It's not like we can just send Carter out there to disable Kharon's techno stuff then kick his ass."

"Well," Daniel spoke up. "I did learn a little about Riven society from the Asgard. I think if we could destroy Kharon the Riven would return to their galaxy. Their society revolves around their various leaders. Without one to unite a group of them they don't know what to do. And unlike the Goa'uld system lords we don't have to worry about another one stepping in right away to take Kharon's place, because the leaders themselves follow the commands of their High Council."

"So we destroy Kharon, and they all go home?" Jack asked. "You're sure?"

"About as sure as I can be." Daniel replied.

"I don't know if I'm comfortable sending Major Carter out on a mission we know virtually nothing about," Hammond said. "And it's only speculation that this plan will work."

"Well, it was just a suggestion," Daniel suddenly sounded unsure of himself. "I didn't mean we should just pop Sam in a ship and send her out to do battle with this Kharon."

Hammond sat and stared thoughtfully down at the table for a long moment. "What will happen if this Kharon isn't stopped?"

"Well," Daniel said. "He'll probably wipe out any races in the galaxy he feels are a threat to him. The Goa'uld, the Asgard…possibly even us. And then use the Paren, who they work closely with, to enslave most of the people in the galaxy. And the ones they don't enslave they'll…" The rest of Daniel's sentence hung heavily in the air above the table.

"I'll do it." Sam said suddenly. All eyes turned towards her.

Hammond looked doubtful. "Major?"

"Carter," Jack spoke up. "We don't even know what the heck Pluto meant when he said you are Kharon's weakness. I mean we're all just assuming that means you'll be able to whoop his ass."

Sam sighed. "Sir, we know that's not what he meant. He said a 'mental weakness' so maybe I could trick him into something and then defeat him that way, I don't know. The only way we can find out for sure is if I face him."

Jack looked around at the rest of SG-1 and General Hammond. "Is it just me, or does that sound like a better plan to get Carter killed than defeat Kharon?"

"I agree, Colonel." Hammond said, nodding. "Major Carter, until we get more information I'm not sending you anywhere, especially not across the galaxy to defeat an enemy that I _know_ is more powerful than any system lord. You're all dismissed, I'll get back to you once we've got more info."

SG-1 got up and left the briefing room. Jack caught up with Sam as she was boarding the elevator on the way back up to her lab.

"Carter, could I have a minute?"

"Sure." The doors slid shut. Jack turned to face Sam.

"You're not serious about doing this, are you?"

Sam shrugged. "Honestly, it terrifies me. But the thought of living in slavery to something far worse than the Goa'uld frightens me even more."

"Carter, you'd be walking into a death trap," Jack argued. "I mean, look how bad you came out when he _wasn't_ trying to kill you. You really think you'd beat him in a fight? Not that I'm underestimating your abilities…"

"Sir, the important thing is defeating him. That's the only way we can rid the galaxy of one more race trying to enslave it."

The elevator stopped on the level with Sam's lab, and she and Jack got off and started walking down the hall, neither saying anything. Sam stopped at the door to her lab, but Jack put a hand on her shoulder, turning her so she was facing him.

"Carter, I know what's important," he said quietly. "But…freedom would mean nothing to me without you."

Sam took a couple deep breaths. She turned her head, finding herself unable to look into those dark brown eyes. "Sir…" she whispered.

Jack sighed. "I know, I know…Hey, could you look at me for one second?"

Sam turned her head reluctantly.

"Whatever you decide," Jack said. "I'll support you, ok?"

Sam smiled faintly. "Thank you, sir."

* * *

"As I've said before, I _really_ don't like the idea of sending Carter out there." Jack said. He and General Hammond stood in the briefing room a day or so later, faced with a holographic representation of Thor.

"She does not have to go alone," Thor said. "But this may be the only way to drive the Riven from our galaxy. What we learned from the Riven spy is that Kharon is the only leader with intentions to capture this galaxy. If you can destroy him, they will most certainly leave."

"But that's easier said than done," Jack pointed out. "Because while Riven look like your ordinary bad guy, they aren't, they'll kill you with sharp, pointy teeth."

Thor blinked, missing the reference. "Our study of Riven development shows no evidence to indicate that they use their teeth in battle."

Jack waved his hand. "Never mind. What I'm trying to say is if there's any other way to defeat this guy without sending Carter, I'd be all for it. Like, can't we just nuke his ship or something?"

"From what the Asgard tell us," Hammond said. "The Riven would be able to destroy any sort of bomb or missal we could throw at them before it reaches their ship. And if it did happen to reach the ship…"

"It's shields would most likely defend it against any harm." Thor finished.

"Right…" Jack tried to think of another idea. Not finding one, he finally gave in. "So, supposing that we go along with this idea of having Carter defeat him…what'll that entail, exactly?"

"As the Riven Pluto told you," Thor said. "Without their technology Riven are much weaker. Riven also aren't in the habit of carrying weapons on them. If you're on their ship and they wish to destroy you, they'll use the ship's internal defense system. What Major Carter and those who accompany her would have to do would be to disable the ships main power system, leaving only the basic engines, life support, and shields operational. That way you would be able to engage Kharon in a hand to hand battle without worrying about his ship's internal defenses."

Jack raised his hand. "Excuse me, what about the rest of the crew?"

Thor blinked. "Our intelligence tells us that Kharon is currently on one of his cruisers, which are many times smaller than the Riven ship you were on. They also have only a small amount of Riven on them. As I've said, they do not need weapons, so guards aren't necessary. They only have those Riven ideal to running the ship and carrying out Kharon's orders."

"Hmmm," Jack nodded. "That sounds slightly more doable."

"Do you know how big exactly one of these cruisers is?" Hammond asked.

"Perhaps the size of your ship, The Prometheus." Thor replied. "I'm afraid I must be leaving you now. Please contact me with your decision."

Hammond nodded curtly. "We will, and thank you, Thor."

Thor vanished in a flash of bright light.

"Well, Sir?" Jack asked, turning to face Hammond.

"I don't know, Colonel." Hammond replied. "This mission would require sending more than one SG team and I don't think I'm willing to risk that many people."

"So just send SG-1, we've done stuff like this before." Jack said. "Remember that time we blew up a sun? Or defeated Ra and Apophis and…"

"I get the point," a faint grin showed on Hammond's face. "You're really think you're up to this?"

"Saving the galaxy?" Jack waved it aside with his usual carefree air. "I'm sure we'll be fine."

Hammond sighed heavily. "Alright then, you've got a go. Dissmissed."

"Great." Jack turned and walked out into the hall, then added under his breath, "Carter, I really hope you know what you're doing…"

To Be Continued…


	10. The Kiss and the Courage

A/N - Just thought I'd throw in how i'd gotten the title for this chapter: I saw it on some girl's shirt at school and though it sounded interesting. It's probably from something like a movie or a band, but i'd never heard it before...I just thought it was cool. Part of the plot for this chapter was actually developed after I read the phrase "the kiss and the courage"

Part IX: The Kiss and the Courage

"So here we are…on a ship…again…" Jack gestured around vaguely at his surroundings.

Thor regarded him in the way only Asgard could. "This trip will not be very long, O'Neill."

"I know," Jack shrugged. "I just wish we'd get something out of this."

"What, freedom for the galaxy isn't enough for you?" Sam snapped from where she sat against the wall. A second later she added, "Sir."

Jack looked over to Daniel and winced. Both had noticed how grumpy Sam had been since their departure, though she couldn't be blamed.

"Is something wrong, Major Carter?" Thor asked.

Sam looked up. She was working on loading her P90 with the newly developed naquadah bullets that supposedly were able to kill Riven. "I'm still trying to figure out what Pluto meant about me being Kharon's weakness."

"Maybe he's got a thing for blondes." Jack suggested jokingly. Sam glared at him so hard that he took a couple steps backwards. "Ok ok, I'm sorry, Carter, sorry."

"With all due respect, Sir," Sam said. "I don't really need that right now."

"Ok," Jack said, suddenly serious. "It's just my way of whistling in the dark, you know that…I'm sorry, ok?!"

"Jack…" Daniel said warningly through gritted teeth.

With one last look at Sam, Jack turned and went to see what Teal'c was up to.

* * *

Jack re-entered the main control room of the Asgard ship to hear a faint beeping. "What's that all about?" 

Sam turned from where she and Daniel stood looking at the main screen. "Sir, the Riven ship just came into sensory range…Thor was right, it is about the size of the Prometheus."

Jack turned around to face Thor. "And how long before we can beam in there?"

"A little while longer," Thor replied. "You may want to check your equipment. We will only have a brief time in range before they see us and open fire."

Sam began checking that everything was strapped to her vest, and Daniel left to put his on. Jack took this opportunity to talk to Sam.

"Carter?"

Sam looked up. "Yessir?"

"I'm sorry."

Sam nodded.

* * *

Jack was hardly prepared for the second Thor beamed them aboard the Riven ship. One minute they were on the Asgard vessel, the next, standing in what appeared to be a storage closet. 

"Ok," Jack said. "Daniel and Teal'c, when we get the generator down, you two are going to have to keep it down, ok? Make sure no one gets in there while Carter and I go kick this Kharon's slimy grey ass. Got that?"

"Indeed." Teal'c bowed his head.

"Great," Daniel looked around, his hand tightening on his gun. "Which way?"

"We'll take a left when we get out of here." Sam explained. She turned to Jack. "Sir, do you know the way? Or should I take point?"

"After you," Jack said with a sweeping gesture of his hand towards the door.

Sam went out into the hall. SG-1 moved stealthily and did not encounter any Riven for a few minutes. The first two they did encounter were apparently "tech crew" and were busy fixing something in the wall when the four humans appeared.

Letting out strange squawks, the two Riven turned and started advancing on SG-1, but Sam and Jack each fired once and the two Riven fell, dead instantly.

"Sweet. These naquadah bullets really do the trick." Jack said appreciatively as he stepped over the bodies. They continued on.

At the end of a corridor Sam gestured for them to stop.

"What is it, Carter?" Jack hissed.

"Sir, there's a group of Riven just…standing there." Sam squinted. "It looks like they're talking or something."

"Can we get around them?"

Sam moved back in the hall, out of sight of the Riven. She shook her head. "No, Sir. They're blocking the exact path we need to take to get to the generator room."

"It would appear that our only course of action will be to engage them in battle," Teal'c said.

"Great, I can always do with some more stuff that results in the bam with a bang-o," Jack grinned cheekily, earning him a reproachful glare from his 2IC. "Whistling, Carter, just whistling in the dark…"

"Sir!"

"Right." Jack gave himself a little shake, as though to regain composure. "Come on, we'll hit these guys guns blazing."

And so they did, taking the Riven by complete surprise. In seconds however the ships internal defense system activated, even as the last Riven fell. Weapons hidden in the walls began firing at SG-1, and they all ducked into side passages to get out of the line of fire.

Jack wiped his hand over his forehead. "Well that was-"

"Sir!" Sam shouted, grabbing Jack and pulling him down so he was laying flat on his back. Looking up he saw what looked like a blue laser line pass above him. He rolled onto his back just in time to see it slice right through Teal'c staff weapon, which the Jaffa had left sticking up in the air.

SG-1 got to their feet. Sam turned, and swore. Jack turned too. Another laser, red this time and in a crosshatched pattern that filled the entire hall was coming at them.

Jack just had time to say, "Resident Evil, anyone?" before Sam pulled him into the other hallway.

They made a break for the door at the far end, making it through and shutting it just as a loud explosion came from the other side.

The room they'd come out into must have been at the core of the ship. It was round, and huge. The ceiling was high above their heads and there appeared to be no floor save for a walkway around the edge, and smaller walk ways leading to a huge hexagonal pillar that hung in the middle. Below the walkways, all that stood between them and the empty void of space was a glimmering air-lock shield.

"We must have been farther into the ship than I thought," Sam said. "This is the generator room."

Jack was eyeing the metal walkways with distaste. "Is this a good time to mention that I really hate walking across things I can see through? Especially when they're over a big…black...emptiness…"

Daniel too, was examining the walkways that led to the main generator core. "Let's just hope we get across before the defense system kicks in…it looks like these walkways can retract."

"Yeah," Sam nodded. "We should each take one walkway and get across as fast as we can. We'lll be able to deactivate the defenses from there."

They all stood before one of the walkways. Jack gingerly put his hand on the thin metal railings that ran on either side. They swayed slightly.

"Ok," Jack said. "Move it!"

They all started running across the walkways. No sooner had they started then there was a rumbling of machinery and the walkways gave a shudder. Everyone moved faster. Teal'c was the first to make it across, then Jack, then Daniel.

"Carter, what's the holdup?!" Jack cried, seeing Sam stopped.

"Sir, my P90's caught on the railing!" Sam cried desperately.

"So unhook it from your vest!"

"Sir, I might – "

"DO IT!" Jack roared as the walkway Sam was on began retracting. Hurriedly she unclipped her P90 and charged, leaping across the gap. "Carter!" Jack ran over to pull Sam the rest of the way onto the central platform.

"Thank you, Sir." Sam said, breathing heavily.

"Anytime." Jack waved at the banks of screens and keypads. "So, where do we start?"

"We need to deactivate the primary internal defensive systems, the external defensive systems and the hyper drive engines as well as block all power outputs so they can't re-rout anything." Sam said.

Jack stared at her blankly. "Just tell me what shiny buttons to press, ok?"

Sam grinned. "Leave it to me, Sir."

In a short while the only lights in the ship were the dull red and yellow emergency lights. Sam had left the security cameras and surveillance system running so Daniel and Teal'c could see if anyone was approaching the generator room.

"Ok, this switch here retracts and extends the platforms. You see any Riven coming in and you withdraw them." Sam explained.

"Right," Daniel nodded. "And you're sure they won't be shooting at us?"

"They don't have handheld weapons on ships." Sam said. "Because the internal defenses take care of that. But we've just disabled those."

"Great." Daniel looked nervously at Sam and Jack. "Well…good luck, you two."

"Thanks, Daniel." Jack grinned. "Come on, Carter, let's see you kick this guy's ass."

* * *

The ship had taken on a definitely eerie feeling. As Sam and Jack left the generator room, they noticed that all the hallways seemed to have suffered major explosions. Lights hung askew and walls were blasted apart. 

"I must have triggered something by accident while I was disabling the system…" Sam muttered.

"No complaints from me," Jack said. He gestured with his gun at several fallen Riven. "The more of these guys we _don't _have to deal with, the happier I am." They continued walking.

They hadn't destroyed all the Riven, however. As they rounded a bend they found themselves facing a group of the sinister aliens. The one in the center was taller than the others; unmistakably Kharon. Jack opened fire immediately, not noticing through the barrage that Kharon vanished. When all the guards lay dead, Jack pulled Sam into a tight alcove in the wall.

"Sir?" Sam gave him a questioning look.

"I'm all out of naquadah bullets," Jack said. "It's all down to hand to hand. You sure you're ready for this?"

Sam glanced out into the hall. A long piece of pipe with jagged ends lay against the wall. She nodded. "As ready as I'll ever be." She was staring out into the hall, not really seeing.

Jack put a hand under her chin, turning her face back towards him. "Hey, I'll be right behind you, watching your six, ok?"

Sam nodded. "I have to do this myself, Sir. As much for personal reasons as others."

"Much as I'd like to say you're not supposed to let personal feelings get into things like that, I won't, because I can't really talk about that." Jack said. "But if I see you getting the crap kicked out of you, I'm not just going to stand by and wait."

"I know."

Jack put a hand on Sam's arm. He could feel her shaking slightly. "You're frightened."

"To tell you the truth, Sir…I'm terrified." Sam said, echoing the words she'd spoken in the infirmary so long ago.

Jack stared at her, watching the emotion swirl behind those blue eyes. He slowly leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips. "That's for wanting to see you again." He kissed her again, and Sam responded, causing the kiss to quickly grow more passionate. A sudden noise caused Jack to pull away. "And that," he said quietly. "Is for courage."

* * *

Sam moved down the hall, metal pole clutched in both hands, and the comforting knowledge that Jack was right behind her in her mind. She eventually came out into a meeting of hallways, a large round area with corridors branching off in all directions and a single, yellow emergency light burning in the ceiling. 

Sam stood there, looking around. The only sounds were the rushing of blood in her ears and her own heavy breathing. She couldn't see Jack, but she knew he was there, waiting. Somehow this thought gave her courage.

"Can you here me, Kharon?!" She challenged. "Are you out there?"

The Riven appeared so suddenly in one of the corridors that Sam jumped when she noticed him. His huge yellow eyes were fixed on her.

"You speak with a brave tongue, Samantha Carter," Kharon said, his words hissing out between his long teeth. "But I sense fear in you." To Sam's surprise, he held out one hand to her. "Do not fear, I will not harm you."

Sam snorted, forcing her voice full of bravado. "Why do I find that hard to believe?"

"I do not intend to kill you," Kharon said. "But if you do not tell your friends to restart the generator, I will kill them. Even that one who thinks he's so cleverly hiding in the shadows."

"You didn't want to kill me?" Sam could hear her own voice trembling.

"No," Kharon's voice was soft and quiet, sounding like a snake slithering through the shadows in the night. "Come back to me, Samantha Carter, and your friends won't suffer the horrible fate that I have in store for them."

Sam stood rooted to the spot, letting her fear be present on her face, letting Kharon think she was too terrified of him to do anything. He walked slowly towards her. Sam let the metal pole lower from the defensive position it had previously been in. Kharon walked slowly around her, and Sam turned, keeping him in view.

"This isn't so difficult, is it?" Kharon asked when he was a few inches from Sam.

"No." Sam whispered. Then suddenly brought the pole up, smashing it against Kharon's head. It didn't seem to damage him except that he reeled backwards letting out a howl of rage.

Turning fierce eyes on Sam he charged, knocking Sam back against the wall. Jack had just stepped out and was behind Kharon when the Riven stood up and stumbled back, the pole rammed into his side. Letting out snarls he pulled it out, then turned back to Sam who was slumped in a daze against the wall.

"HEY!" Jack shouted. Kharon whirled around, and hit Jack hard across the chest with the metal pole. The colonel crumpled, winded, only able to look up as Kharon advanced on him, the pole raised, jagged end pointed downwards.

And then suddenly Kharon was forced to the side and down as Sam leapt on his back, digging her knees into his spine. The two fell with a crash to the ground, and before Kharon could throw Sam off she'd grabbed his head and twisted it sharply. There was a loud crack, and then nothing. Sam let go and stood up.

"Wow," was all Jack could say.

Sam stood in the middle of the room; breathing heavily, sweat beading on her forehead. She pulled out her radio. "Daniel, Teal'c, lets get out of here."

To Be Concluded….


	11. Recognition,Decisions,and a Happy Ending

A/N – This being the final chapter of the story, I'd just like to give a big thanks to everyone who has, and everyone who will at some time, review the story. Your comments are always greatly appreciated. Now after all that action, here's a bit of good old Sam/Jack shippyness.

Part X: Recognitions, Decisions, and a Happy Ending

"Welcome back, SG-1." Hammond said as Sam, Jack, Daniel and Teal'c descended the ramp from the stargate. "I take it your mission was successful?"

"Very successful, sir," Jack said, clapping Sam on the back. "You should have seen Carter! Really kicked some major butt."

"Indeed," Teal'c agreed. "She fought very admirably from what we viewed over the security cameras."

Hammond smiled. "Well done, Major."

"Thank you, Sir." Sam looked slightly dazed. "I think I should go to the infirmary…I'm a little…out of it."

"I'll walk her down," Jack said, his arm around Sam's shoulders.

"Alright." Hammond nodded. "Major Carter, when you're feeling better I'd like to speak with you in my office."

* * *

"I just got off the phone with the president," Hammond said as Sam entered and sat down. "He gives his thanks for what you've done." 

Sam found herself only able to nod.

"Anyway, what I wanted to talk to you about," Hammond folded his hands. "You've shown immense capability as a soldier and a leader…I think it's more than time you headed your own SG team. There are many others who agree with me."

"Sir, I…I…don't…" Sam stammered. "I really don't know…"

"Well, you don't have to decide just yet." Hammond said. "Wait until after the ceremony tomorrow and then you can tell me. There's no rush."

Sam nodded. "Ok."

"You're dismissed, Major. And thank you."

* * *

"So what did Hammond want?" Jack asked as he and Sam ate dinner in the commissary. 

"He asked me if I want to lead my own team." Sam was still slightly dazed by the proposal; it certainly wasn't anything she'd thought about.

Jack raised his eyebrows. "Really?" he seemed to think a moment. "I'm not surprised. You'd make a good team leader."

"I know, I just…" Sam's voice trailed off and she shrugged. "I don't think I want to leave SG-1."

Jack gave her a pointed look. "I wouldn't be your CO anymore."

"That would be a really selfish reason for me to leave, sir." Sam muttered. She glanced up and there was something unreadable in her eyes.

"You ok, Carter?" Jack asked. Sam nodded, so he continued. "Don't stress about it too much, just wait until after the ceremony tomorrow to decide anything."

Sam looked up at him curiously. "That's what Hammond said."

Jack grinned and winked, then got up to dump his tray and return to his mission report. Sam remained in the commissary and was joined slightly later by Teal'c and Daniel.

"Why do I feel like there's something going on that I don't know about?" Sam said.

Teal'c and Daniel exchanged a look, then Teal'c said, "I do not believe there is, Major Carter."

Sam didn't believe him in the least, but she didn't push the topic either.

"So, Jack said Hammond wants you to lead your own team," Daniel said, watching Sam cautiously.

Sam sighed. "Yep. And no, I haven't decided yet."

"I believe you would make a very capable leader, Major Carter." Teal'c said.

"Thanks, Teal'c."

"We'd miss you, though," Daniel said. "SG-1 wouldn't be the same without you."

"Well it's good to know that someone doesn't want me gone," Sam said with a laugh. She stood up. "I'll see you later, guys, I've got a project to finish up."

"Don't forget we've got that 'appreciation ceremony' tomorrow!" Daniel called after her.

"How could I forget?" Sam called back.

Up in her lab Sam sat before her computer, but she wasn't working on anything. Instead she rested her chin in her hands and closed her eyes, thinking.

It wouldn't feel right not being on SG-1. They'd become so much like a family to her. Daniel, like her geeky little brother, Teal'c very much like a protective older brother, always there for her. She cared about them. And Jack…she didn't think she could stand not working with him. Not being able to feel his strong arms around her when something went wrong on a mission, not knowing he was always behind her, watching her back…

Sam must have fallen asleep at the lab table, for she was woken by Daniel shaking her.

"Huh? What time is it?"

"Seven," Daniel said then clarified, "in the morning. Please tell me you didn't just spend all night working on something."

Sam looked around her blearily. "No…I must have fallen asleep in here…"

"Well you'd better hurry up and get ready, the ceremony starts in a little while."

Sam got to her feet. "Right, I'll go get dressed…"

Daniel followed her out into the hall. "Do you want me to find you some coffee?"

"That would be wonderful, Daniel, thanks!" Sam called as she hurried off towards the locker rooms.

* * *

A short while later Sam stood between Jack and Daniel on the ramp before the stargate, a grin plastered on her face as she looked out at the other members of the SGC, standing at attention while Hammond delivered a speech about the accomplishments of SG-1. There was applause, cheering, but Sam wasn't processing anything. She was still lingering in the dream like state that accompanied not getting enough sleep. 

Suddenly Jack nudged her, breaking her out of her reverie just in time to hear Hammond saying, "And though today is meant to celebrate the accomplishments of the whole team, there is one person I'd like to thank especially, for her recent victory, as well as how much she's done for us over the years." He gestured to indicate Sam, and there was applause.

"Here's looking at you, kid." Jack muttered in her ear.

"Major Samantha Carter has done so much more for this world than even myself can boast to," Hammond continued. "Since she first came here a few years ago she has grown and changed, for the better, of course, a great deal. So it is with great pleasure and honor that I announce her promotion to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel."

Sam stared, not quite sure she'd heard correctly. So this is what they hadn't told her about!

Jack gave her a little push. "Go on!" Sam looked up at him, and the little smile he was giving her was enough to melt away the temporary paralysis that had taken over her.

* * *

That evening SG-1 was over at Janet's house for a little celebration in honor of Sam's promotion. Sam was having fun, being with her friends, knowing that there was one less threat out there to worry about. 

Suddenly Jack leaned towards her and whispered, "Hey, Carter, could I have a word with you outside?"

Sam raised an eyebrow. "Sure." They slipped out through the back door into Janet's back yard. Sam turned to face Jack. "What is it, sir?"

"I'm only gonna say this once, Carter," Jack said. "I'm not your CO anymore, you don't have to call me 'sir'!'

"Ok, _Jack_," Sam said, a wry grin spreading across her face. "What's up?"

"Well…" Jack shifted nervously from foot to foot. "When Hammond told me you were getting promoted I asked him if this would be alright and he said that it was pushing the rules a bit but he didn't think anyone would care, I mean they probably wouldn't even if you hadn't been promoted but-"

"What are you talking about?" Sam asked.

"I was just wondering," Jack said, his voice growing quiet as he looked up at Sam. "If may be you wanted to get married…or something."

Sam blinked. It was so typically Jack to bring up something _that_ serious in such an offhanded way.

"Oh, and I got you this." Jack pulled a small box out of his pocket and tossed it to Sam.

Sam opened the box. "Jack!" she said breathlessly. "Why did…I mean…yes!"

"Was that a yes as in…?"

"Yes!"

Jack stepped forward and pulled Sam into a tight embrace, then stepped back long enough to slip the ring onto Sam's finger. "A Cartier for Carter."

Sam's eyes widened as Jack put his arms around her again. "You're not serious-"

"No," Jack grinned. "I don't have _that_ much money." He leaned down and kissed her.

Returning back to the house, they were met by an inquisitive stare from Daniel, who was slumped at one end of the couch. "Where were you two?"

"We had to get some air," Jack explained.

"Right." Daniel didn't sound convinced.

Janet looked up. "And that's why Sam's blushing so hard?"

Sam put her hands over her cheeks self-consciously. Everyone noticed the ring.

"Sam?" Janet said, looking at her friend with a bemused expression.

"What?" Sam lowered her hands. Her mouth was twisted into a funny expression, one she got when she was trying hard not to smile. She looked down at her feet.

"Seeing as my _fiancée_," Jack stressed the word, and put an arm around Sam's shoulders as if making sure no one would have a doubt who he was talking about. "is so tongue tied…I think I should make the announcement that we're going to get married."

* * *

(A couple months or so later)

"Now this is what I call relaxation time." Jack muttered from under the hat he'd set over his face to keep the sun off. He was leaning back in his chair on the pier behind the cabin, one hand loosely holding the handle of a fishing pole, the other holding Sam's hand. She sat in a chair next to him, staring out across the water. From the deck came the noises of Daniel and Teal'c attempting to grill some hot dogs and hamburgers. Jack peaked out from under his hat. "Do you think it was a good idea to let those two cook?"

Sam turned and looked at him, shrugging. "They'll manage." She gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Besides, don't you like just sitting here like this?"

Jack straightened up. "Of course." He turned and shouted, "Hey, Daniel, how long are those going to take to cook?"

"The coals aren't hot enough yet…I think…" Daniel replied.

"You want a hand?"

"No! You and Sam just relax, we've got everything covered!"

Jack turned back to Sam and grinned. "When I hear one of them screaming, then I'll get up."

Sam laughed and leaned over, kissing Jack lightly.

Jack slumped back down in his chair, putting his feet up on the picnic cooler. "I was talking to some hotshot from the Pentagon today."

"Oh yeah?"

"I didn't really like him, he was too nosy for me." Jack shot Sam a grin. "He was like 'Is it true you recently married Lt. Col. Samantha Carter?'."

Sam grinned. "So what'd you say to that?"

"I said, 'That's Samantha Carter-O'Neill…with two L's."

The End!


End file.
